


Ready Aim Fire

by timefornothing



Category: Homestuck
Genre: FUCK, Humanstuck, Magic, Magicstuck, Multi, Prophecies, Skaia, Slow Burn, au where no one dies, because we deserve that, dream stuff, elemental powers, except its a kingdom and not a big chessboard, i guess, idk they have cool powers and i wanted to get into their characters more, magestuck, medieval times, mentions of other characters and dancestors, oh well, shameless use of game words because who needs to be creative, talk of injuries i guess?, this is going to end up super long isn't it, we'll get to the trolls eventually i promise
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-04-22
Updated: 2017-04-23
Packaged: 2018-06-03 16:57:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 51,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6618760
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timefornothing/pseuds/timefornothing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There is an unrest brewing deep in the countryside of the kingdom of Skaia. The Black King has finally put an end to magic users, banished and killed until there were none left. </p><p>Yet some survived.</p><p>Hidden away in quiet villages and with families who would rather die than support the ruling family, they survived. They need time for their powers to grow, but grow they will, and John is ready for that day.</p><p>After all, he is the heir.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Fallen Heir

**Author's Note:**

> i really liked how on mspa wiki they had associated elements and i was playing around with the idea of dave the firebender and now this happened. enjoy lol

_With our backs to the wall, the darkness will fall_  
_We never quite thought we could lose it all_  
_Ready, aim, fire, ready, aim, fire_  
_An empire's fall in just one day_  
_You close your eyes and the glory fades_  
_Ready, aim, fire, ready, aim, fire away._

 

"Jade!" He shrieked, reaching out in the darkness. Another boom echoes through the castle hallways, and for a brief moment, the stone hallway is lit up by the fire that burns outside. You can see your sister running towards you as well, and you hold her close to you as servants and noblemen alike run around in chaos, all of them afraid for your lives.

"What's going on?" She cries, young voice barely loud enough over the attack. 

"I don't know! I don't know, Jade." You look around quickly, biting your lip. She's only six, she doesn't know what's happening. You're eight, so that's not much better. But quickly, you decide that you need to run. _What would Dad say?_

_"Protect your sister and yourself. You are the future of this kingdom. I'm proud of you, son. I love you."_

"Come on, we have to go!" You grab her arm and sprint, pulling her after you as you weave your way between people too scared to notice the children at their feet. You make your way through servant halls that you only know of because of the pranks you pulled and make yourself to the castle grounds. It's even worse out here, the screams and explosions echoing in the night. Whatever's happening, you know it's not good. 

"John..." Jade whines, tugging at your sleeve again. You're both in your night clothes, barely shielding you against the cold night winds. As if in response to you thinking about them, you feel a breeze tug at your hair, drawing your attention to the darker parts of the courtyard where shadows line the walls and trees hang over the edge. Directing your gaze, the breeze ruffles the leaves of a tree hanging low enough over an upturned cart that you two could probably make it over.

"Come on." You pull on her again, running with the wind at your backs. No one pays any attention to you two as more of the castle begins to burn, and you hoist her up on the cart, following after. The tree seems to reach down to pull her up, and you follow. She scrambles down the tree to the other side, and with one more quick glance back over your shoulder, you turn and run away from the only home you've ever known.

Your name is John, son of King Egbert, you are the Heir to the throne of Skaia, and you're only eight years old when you see your kingdom burn.

\- - - - -

You're 12 years old when you first see the flyers sentencing you and people like you to death.

You and Jade had run for days after the seige, and hid in a barn leagues from the castle for a long time. Soon, the older man who lived there noticed, but was kind enough to take you in. He was far away enough from the castle not to recognize you or your sister, and poor enough that he didn't ask what had brought you here. He had a daughter only a few years older than you, and told you that you could stay as long as you helped out around the farm.

He raised chickens and herbs and sheep, and since it was only him and his daughter, needed all the extra hands he could get, especially because he always had such a bountiful crop! Apparently they grew more than anyone else in the region. Though you didn't realize how important it was back then, he never asked why whenever Jade was in the fields, all the plants grew like crazy, but you're thankful for it now that you see what could have happened.

You and the man's daughter, Jane, are in town selling bundles of herbs at the market and buying more supplies and seeds for next year. She's busy in discussion with someone interested in your basil when the sound of paper crinkling catches your ears, so you turn and look, easily distracted.

You and Jade, of course, were taught to read and write at the castle, but it seems like most of the farmers didn't know how other than numbers and figures for trade. (Jane knew, but her dad said she was a special exception!) So when it looked like someone in nicer clothes than anyone else here was hanging up a flyer, of course you were interested! And you were even more interested in what it said. So, after checking one more time that Jane could handle it, you trotted over to the board after the fancy man left and looked up at the poster and it's fancy print.

****

"All known users of magic must present themselves to the Black King.  
Magic users have been deemed dangerous, and should not be approached.  
Alert an authority immediately if you have any suspicions.  
Any who fail to report to the King's castle will be executed for treason."

You can feel yourself frowning. Magic? Like spells, or what you can do? And other people can do magic? You had always figured you and Jade just had your powers because you were part of the royal family (your dad and uncles could use it, too!). There were others like you? And more importantly, why were they being executed?

A heavy hand settles on your shoulder, and you jump in surprise. Turning around, you see Jane looking at the flyer as well, lips pressed into a thin line. Her light blue eyes scan the flyer, and the frown only grows deeper.

"Jane?" You ask quietly, alarmed. She was always happy and smiling, especially when she was out in the fields. But now, seeing her so deeply troubled by this, it made you worried, too.

"We need to get home, John." She said quietly, steering you away from the board and the small crowd that was beginning to gather around it.

"What's going on?" You ask. Though you were scared, your curiosity was still running strong, and you wanted to know why that flyer was posted. "Are magic users bad?"

"Keep your voice down." She hissed, though she gave a quick smile to the others she passed. "We'll talk when we get home."

The ride home was silent, even the horses being more quiet than usual. You were told to sit at the table while you waited for her dad and Jade to return from the fields, and when he did, she explained the flyer, and he made the same grim expression you had seen on her.

"What's going on?" Jade asked, frowning like you. Even though she was young, she was still as smart as you, maybe smarter, and she could definitely tell when something was up. "Why are they saying magic users are bad?"

Jane's father turned to the two of you with a sad expression on his face, and then sat down. Your heart dropped into your stomach. He never frowned, ever.

"John, have you ever wondered why the kingdom fell all those years ago?"

Your name is John, you're the fallen and hidden heir to the throne of Skaia, you've never told anyone your secret, and you're twelve years old when you find out that if anyone knows about you and your sister's abilities, you'll be killed on the spot.


	2. The Difference Between

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Hey Mr Motion, make me a potion,_   
>  _Shake it all up with your mystery._

"Just because we're different?"

Jade is the first to speak, brows furrowed as she tries to puzzle over the answer. He had sat down and explained to you what the flyer meant, but honestly, it didn't feel like it cleared anything up. Jane's dad only nods, and then Jade's speaking again.

"But John and I have been able to do this stuff our whole lives! Our parents could back at--" A sharp look from you cuts her off, and she hesitates before continuing, "I know not a lot of people can, but they never wanted to hurt us before now."

"You're much too young to remember, dear." Jane's dad starts slowly, as if debating what to say. "Back before you were born, when I was a much younger man, we coexisted. Magic users were known and respected by the communities where they lived. Sure, there were bad eggs, but you always have a few of those in any group. It wasn't until something happened in the kingdom's own castle that made people wary." He sighed heavily. "One magic user was showing off, and like all show offs, lost control of their powers. They ended up killing a well loved nobleman. That was what started the unrest. Ever since then, many magic users have chosen to keep their ability secret, such as Jane here."

That comes to you as a surprise. You suspected, just because of the way she looked at Jade, but she can use magic? What kind? Is it windy like you? Or maybe--

But Jane's dad is still talking, so you divert your attention back to him.

"And that was the smartest thing to do. The people who took over the kingdom come from a land far away called Derse. They hate magic and anything to do with it, which is why they wanted to take our kingdom down. I'm assuming they viewed us as a threat. I'm surprised they let it go this long." With a weary sigh, he leans back in the old wood chair. "Then again, we are a bit off the beaten path. Maybe it's just taken them this long to send people to the smaller towns and villages."

"So everyone that can use magic is going into hiding?" You ask, worrying your bottom lip. "But didn't the flyer say to turn yourself in? You could be killed otherwise!"

"You'll be killed just for going." He answers solemnly. "Our best bet is to lay as low as possible. I know we've never discussed your abilities openly before now, but you'll need to stop using them until this blows over." He looks over at Jade, smiling softly. "Including helping all the flowers along the front path."

"This is stupid!" Jade crosses her arms and leans back, huffing out a bunch of air. 

"Stupid, but safe." He nods, then looks around at all of you. "I've got a bit more work to get done before I start on dinner. Jane…" He pauses, swallowing hard. "Tell them the back up plan. No matter how young they are, it never hurts to be prepared." With another shake of his head, he turns and walks out the front door, and immediately you turn to Jane.

"What sort of magic can you do?"

She smiles at you, shuffling in her chair. "You've never noticed?"

"No!" Jade's leaning forward again, all annoyance gone. "I can't believe you haven't told us! You knew _we_ could do it!" 

"Because you two aren't exactly hiding it." She grins back, and you blush a little. You have to admit, it was kind of hard not to use your powers. The breeze just liked hanging around! When has a little wind ever hurt anybody?

Jade was another story, however. Plants popped up around her all the time, especially when she wasn't paying attention. Once, when she was angry, an entire tree nearly uprooted itself!

"So what can you do?" You ask, shaking off your embarrassment. 

Jane looks around for a minute, then smiles wider. Picking up a fork from the counter, she holds it out on the flat of her hand in front of you. You and Jade both lean forward, and in front of your eyes, you watch as the fork begins folding itself in half.

"Whoa…" Jade's eyes widen, and you can feel your own mirroring the movement. 

"That's so cool!" You look from the fork back up to her face, where she looks proud of herself. "Can you do it on things bigger than that?"

"Not really." Jane shrugs. "The most metal I've ever really been around was the blacksmith's stand in the village, but it felt rude to keep bending all of his hard work." She shrugs sheepishly, and Jade giggles next to you.

"What was the back up plan your dad told you to tell us about?" You asked, immediately hating the way her face dropped. "I mean, we don't have to really be ready for anyone to come after us, right? The only people who know are the four of us."

"You never know." Jane answers sadly. "A neighbor or a traveler may have seen something, and who knows what they'll give away if they're offered a reward." The sadness on her face makes her look impossibly older, not just three years older than you. "Anyways, my father made me come up with a plan in case they did come for us. He said he couldn't be involved because the less he knows, the less they can get out of him."

She looked towards the door for a second, then turned back to you and your sister. "If we're ever found out, we're supposed to leave as soon as we can. I always have a bag packed and ready to go, out in the tool shed in the farthest field. I'd recommend you two do the same. We're supposed to run as fast as we can and hide out in the trees at the edge of our land. If we see father build a fire, that means it's safe to come back. If not, we're supposed to wait one day for a message, and if one doesn't come, we leave."

"And go where?" Jade asks quickly, and you can almost feel the nervousness radiate off of her. You feel the exact same way. Those two weeks where you two were running and hiding were the worst memories of your life, and you were definitely not looking forward to repeating the experience.

"We have a small cottage built a long way from here. It's something my mother built a long time ago, built deep in the woods where no one owns the land. She built it because she was afraid she and I would have to run someday."

"Could your mother do magic?" You ask, instantly intrigued by the thought of more magic users. Before today, there were only six you knew of. Boy, were you sure learning a lot!

"She could." Jane smiled fondly. "One of the rarer types. She could manipulate light." A fond smile crosses her face, looking over to the fire pit. "She used to make the light dance across the floor in shapes and patterns, using it to tell stories when she put me to sleep at night…" She faded away, then shook herself into smiling again. "Anyways, I better start dinner. You two go pack. One bag each, only clothes for layering and necessary supplies."

You and Jade rushed off to your room you shared with Jane, arguing about which things you could and couldn't take. Going through your belongings like that--even as few as they were--was enough to shake you. You really didn't want to go on the run again, not when you had finally settled in! You were happy here. Sure, you didn't remember a lot about the castle, but you remembered how fun it was and what it felt like to have a family. Here, you had something close to that. You didn't want to lose it again.

That night, you were still mulling over your memories. Sheesh, you really didn't remember as much as you thought you did about the castle.

"Hey Jade?" You whispered into the darkness. Jane had long since put the candle out, and you could hear her soft snores from her bed across the room. Jade shared a bed with you, but her back was to you, facing the wall.

"What?" She whispered back, rolling over to look at you. You could barely see her eyes in the darkness, but they were open as ever. Something told you she couldn't sleep either.

"What do you remember about living in the castle?"

"In the castle?" She frowns a bit, pausing. "Not a lot. I remember those little pink and blue cookies Cook made us. And the maid who sang to me."

You smile to yourself, looking up at the ceiling. That maid had sang to you, too. She was young, younger than a lot of the other servants. But you saw her nearly as much as you saw your own mother. 

"Do you remember the picnics on Sundays?" You ask, and you can feel her shift in the bed beside you.

"Kind of. Didn't we get rained on a lot?"

You laugh, then slap a hand over your mouth so you don't wake up Jane. "Yeah." You finally whisper back. "I think it was Uncle Reg, wasn't it? He always talked about rain. Gee, a lot of people we knew had powers…" You trail off, swallowing. You two were veering dangerously close to Do Not Mention territory. Talking about memories was fine, talking about the people you lost, however…

"Did they all die because they had powers?" Jade asks, voice impossibly small. 

"No, remember what Jane's dad said." You turn over quickly, reaching out to grab her hand in the darkness. "Derse has been wanting to attack for a long time. It wasn't just because of that." She doesn't look convinced, and you gotta admit, you weren't either. "Don't worry, Jade, we'll get our kingdom back!" You squeeze her hand, and she gives you a half smile. "Just gotta get older and stronger and someday we'll win it back. And when we're in charge, everyone can be whoever they wanna be. Does that sound good?"

She nods, finally smiling back. "Yeah. Sounds good, bro." With that, she nestles further into the pillow, and you turn back on your back.

Yeah. Someday. Someday, you're going to be King, and those Dersites were going to wish they had never heard of Skaia.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao don't get used to every day updates
> 
> EDIT: okay just because some people asked, here we go FAQ's  
> 1\. Yes the trolls will be in it, but it takes a long time lmao sorry  
> 2\. Lots of stories and lore and world-building in these first ten/twelve chapters  
> 3\. GET READY FOR SOME PLOT TWISTS HAHAHA  
> 4\. Yeah there's gonna be shipping and stuff (lmao how is that even a question) and hell yeah there's gonna be some crack ships most likely, but again: it's gonna take a long time to get there.
> 
> anyways
> 
> if y'all ever have any questions, hit me up on tumblr at davetrash and we'll jam about it. i am soooo open to suggestions and requests for this
> 
> thanks for reading (:


	3. Leaving Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Here in the heckle, holding the shackle,_   
>  _I was never welcome here._

Your name is John Egbert, you just turned 15 years old, and you had two years to prepare. But now that they're coming for you, you feel like you're not ready at all. 

You're in cleaning some dishes from breakfast the day after your birthday with Jane when Jade bursts through the door, black hair swinging wildly around her face. 

"They're coming. Soldiers, a ton of them I think."

She pants in the doorway, and you and Jane stare back at her for a moment before sharing a look of panic. Both of you sprint outside, following Jade to the herb garden around back where Jane's dad is standing. He has his hand over his eyes, shielding them from the sun as he looks out to the solitary road that leads into town. You can see the dust clouds, and the sunlight glinting off of yards of metal that means that Jade was probably right in her estimate of "a lot".

"Dad…" Jane mutters, going to stand beside him. He's rigid, staring at the cloud rising into the sky, but the second she puts her hand on his shoulder, he jumps, looking at her with wide eyes. After a moment where he swallows roughly, he turns to look at you and Jade as well, speaking slowly.

"Well, seems like it's time for you all to leave. I'll do what I can here, but you need to go."

"Dad, wait--" Jane starts, voice quiet, but her dad puts his hand on her shoulder, quieting her. 

"It's time. We've been ready for this. I love you all, and I am so, so proud of you."

Your throat seizes up a bit, and then suddenly the breeze is tugging at your hair, and you know you need to leave. Quickly, the three of you hug him, and Jane barks out orders.

"Jade, grab your cloaks and then come help me grab as much food as we can carry! John," She turns to you, blue eyes alight. "Slow them down. When they get to the bottom of our path, run as fast as the wind can carry you and catch up with us." You nod, blinking back pinpricks of tears. _You'd been preparing for this for two years now, get it together, John!_ Shaking off the welling panic inside you, you turn around and walk out to where her father is standing, shovel in hand and still watching the approaching soldiers. It seems like more of them are appearing by the minute.

"I think I can slow them up!" You tell her dad, coming to stand beside him. The wind winds slowly around your ankles as if to reassure you, making your loose pants whip around your ankles.

He takes a second to look at you, like he's weighing his options. "Nothing too suspicious…" He warns, but nods, and you raise your hands, closing your eyes and just feeling with the wind.

It's a warm spring day, the new plants are popping up all over your land, and the wind is in full abundance. For a second, you're tempted to just feel the way it bounces in the light, enjoying the warmth from the sun, but Jane's dad mumbling to himself pulls back your concentration. Feeling along with the wind, you float over the tops of the soldier's heads, counting nearly twenty before you decide you don't want to know the total number. 

With a quick snap of your wrists, the dust in the air behind them blows in front of them, wind carrying it around and blocking their line of sight. The horses are spooked enough by the sudden change, and that causes their whole party to slow, then stop, all of the men yelling at each other in the chaos.

"That'll do, son." 

You open your eyes, blinking away the disorienting feeling that always came with going back inside your head. Jane's dad has a hand on your shoulder, smiling down at you sadly. "It's time to go. This should give you all enough time to run and hide, as deep as you can go. Jane'll know to leave a marker for me. But I'm telling you now, son, don't expect me to come after you. Chances are if they know you're here, they'll keep a guard here until you return. So this may be the last time I see you."

"Sir--" You start, but he cuts you off, giving you a couple rough pats on the back.

"I've always thought of you as a son. Now go, protect your sisters. I love you, and I'm proud of you."

You hesitate, torn, but he gives you a push, turning back to look at the oncoming group. The dust is still settling, so you know they won't be able to see you as you turn and run before leaping into the air and letting the wind carry you low over the ground to the far end of the fields.

Jane and Jade are quite a bit farther into the forest, so you have to drop from the air and begin running before you finally find them. 

"Well?" Jane huffs, handing you your pack breathlessly as you all continue running.

"Slowed them up with a dust storm, but I'm not sure how much longer it'll last." You frown, rubbing your eyes. The sudden change of light made it hard to keep track of all the roots under your feet. Somehow, Jade seemed to be skipping over all of them. "Your dad said not to get our hopes up about going back, though."

Jane and Jade are both silent for a moment, then after a particularly loud _snap!_ of a branch, she says, "Well, glad we got this food then. You two know how to hunt?"

Jade shakes her head, but you answer, "Just rabbits and stuff, I never learned how to do the big animals."

"That'll work for the three of us." And then everyone is silent, focusing too hard on running.

When it starts to get darker, Jane finally slows, braiding a branch of a bush and pointing it to the left. After a few more minutes of walking, she sets down her pack in the middle of a thicket of bushes and asks, "Jade, how well can you move bushes?"

Jade smirks, wiping some sweat from her forehead. Her hair is now a crazy, wind-swept mess, but you decide you probably aren't looking too hot either. "Easy!" Setting her pack down next to Jane's, she cracks her knuckles and wiggles her fingers. "Prepare to be amazed!"

You roll your eyes, but Jane actually cracks a smile, and Jade takes that as a go ahead to unleash chaos upon the bushes. You actually raise your arms to shield your face, watching in horror as the bushes seemingly come to life, the branches whipping up and around and moving outwards from your general area to form almost a solid ring of bush. When the movement finally ceases, a few leaves flutter to the ground, but other than that, it almost looks like you're trapped in nature's prison cell.

"Did you have something like that in mind?" Jade chirps happily, already sitting down on the now exposed grass and underbrush. 

Jane nods, smile a bit wider, although she still looks worried. "Yes, that's perfect! We can eat a bit, then John, I'm going to need you to fly up above the treeline and see if you can spot a signal fire or something like it!"

Something in your gut tells you that's not going to happen, but you can't shoot down her hopeful smile. "Sure thing, Jane!" 

All of you sit in a loose circle, eating a bit and not talking much other than Jade, who's going on about the plants around you. After dinner, you go and check for a fire, but see nothing, and tell Jane so. She makes you check a few more times over the next couple hours, and the next night, and the night after that, and on the fourth night when you come back to tell her you haven't seen anything, she looks down at the ground.

It's almost two full minutes before she speaks, but finally she does as Jade starts tapping her toes.

"Well, seems like it's time to get a move on. We'll go by night, it'll be easier to hide anyways."

Jane leads the way, and as Jade falls in step behind her, she shoots you a worried look, which you return with what you hope is a reassuring smile.

You're John Egbert, ex-prince of Skaia, fifteen years old, and for the second time in your life, you're on the run from the kingdom your father used to rule.


	4. Into the Woods

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _How come I've never seen your face 'round here?_   
>  _I know every single face 'round here_

You've been walking for almost a week now, you have no idea where you're headed, and you're learning there's actually a lot more to magic than you had ever thought.

"So my windy thing is kind of rare?" You ask over dinner one night. Jane had just put the fire out after cooking the rabbit Jade caught. She always said to not leave the fire burning for longer than you needed because it was risky. Thankfully, it was well enough into spring that you didn't really need more than your traveling cloak to stay warm in the early hours huddled up next to Jade and Jane. Also, even more thankfully, Jade was turning out to be an amazing hunter. You've been able to have rabbit or a large bird nearly every time you made camp!

"From what I've heard at least!" Jane answers, looking around the forest. The sun was beginning to rise, casting a pink light through the leaves of the trees above. You can kind of hear a stream trickling a ways away and wonder idly if you could catch a fish in it for breakfast. Or would that be dinner? Man, traveling by night was really screwing you up.

"Like I said, I don't know much about magic since it was banned in the kingdom." Jane continues, looking back to you. "Only the stories from people in the village. It seems like most magic users could do elemental stuff, but I haven't heard a lot about wind magic."

"Elemental powers?" Jade asks, finally paying attention to the conversation and not the frog on her knee. "Like, fire and stuff?"

"Yepp!" Jane nods. "Fire, water, air, and earth are the main four elements, but those four are also the hardest to control or use. It seems like most magic users can do the offshoots from it, such as lightning, iron magic like I can do, light, stone, and I've even heard rumors about dark magic." She counts off on her fingers. "I've also heard tales about magic that affects humans, but those tales can never really be counted on."

"We had an uncle who could control the weather!" Jade adds helpfully, ignoring your worried look. "Er, maybe he was water. I can't remember. But didn't you say your mother could do light? And that was rare?"

Jane blushes sheepishly. "Light magic _is_ a rare one! They're, well, they're all kind of rare I guess. From the way people spoke about it, I'd doubt there are very many magic users left. And if there are, they've been hiding it well, especially now."

"Maybe they could help us take back the kingdom!" Jade grins, gesturing over at you as she swallows the last of her portion. "John's told me that once we're old enough and strong enough, we're gonna go take back the kingdom!"

Jane's head whips around to look at you, and you hold your hands up defensively. _Thanks Jade._ "Maybe! It's a maybe! I mean, like, we're obviously no king or queen--" You shoot a pointed look at Jade, who gives an apologetic shrug-- "But wouldn't it be nice to take back our kingdom from the people who took us over?"

"I suppose." Jane's brow furrowed, and your eyes widened. Was she seriously on board with this plan? She was looking at you like your plan reminded her of something. "That does sound a lot like...Well, nevermind. However, if we practice with our powers often and great strong enough, we may be able to do it! We would need plenty of help though, I've heard those Dersites are a battle hungry people. It'd be hard to beat them in a fight." Oh man, she _was_ on board! 

"So we'll just recruit enough magic users." Jade shrugs, as if it's that easy. "We'll find 'em all and convince them to help."

"Someday." You push, hoping she'll get the hint that it was supposed to be a secret. _"Maybe."_

"Someday, yeah." Jane gives you a smirk, like she knows more than she's letting on, then tosses a few more bones aside and brushes off her hands. "Anyways, we shouldn't be too much farther from where we're going to be staying! I'd say just another day or two of walking. So rest up, you two! We'll try and cover as much ground as we can tomorrow." 

After Jade rearranges a few more bushes, you all settle in for the night, and as you're watching the sun creep up above the trees, you mull over all you had learned.

So magic in itself was pretty rare, and yours and Jade's was even rarer than that? That was pretty cool! A light breeze ruffles your hair as you try and imagine what the others would look like. You've never seen someone with fire magic before, so that'd be fun to see. 

You three had talked a bit more about your powers as you traveled, trying to learn as much as you could, which had brought you to your conversation today. Jane told you that she had never really tried bending metal on anything larger than a pitchfork and never really tried to do much more with it than fix things. Of course, Jane would be practical with her magic. Figures.

Yours was a bit harder to explain. How do you tell someone that the breeze almost feels like a separate person you could talk to? How do you put into words that sometimes if you forgot to pay attention, you could let go and become part of the wind yourself? Jade had gotten it, but that was just because you two were able to show each other through your magic. You kind of wondered why Jane never suggested it, but maybe she didn't know you could do that? And if Jane didn't know about something, chances are it might be something not a lot of people could do. So instead, you told them that you could just direct it where you wanted it to go, you could fly, and a couple times, you've made the clouds move. You could predict the weather, but they already knew that part.

Jade, however, had even less of an explanation than you did! Like you, she seemed confused that Jane hadn't just asked to see what it felt like. So she described it less as controlling and more of she just told the plants what she wanted them to do and they did it. For an example, she asked a flower to grow beside her, and a large purple one sprouted up nearly instantly! Jane asked if the seeds had to be there to create one like that, and Jade had just shrugged and replied that there were no seeds for the rose bush that grew on the side of your old house.

True to Jane's word, you reached the small cottage just before sunrise the next night. As the grey light of dawn crept over the forest, you stepped into a clearing and suddenly found yourself looking at a tiny cottage next to a small pond. It looked like it could only be two or three rooms, but despite the ivy on the sides and the dusty windows, it looked sturdy.

"How long has this been here?" Jade yawned, rubbing her eyes so she could get a better look. "It's the cutest cottage I've ever seen!" From the way her eyes were traveling over everything, you knew she was already planning a garden.

"My mother began building it before I was born and finished when I was four. She died not long after I turned eight, but walked with me often enough before then that I knew the way." Jane had a sad smile on her face. "After that, I came by every so often to drop off any extra supplies we had laying around. I haven't been back since you all came to live with us, it'll be interesting to see if everything is still here."

Jade wavered a bit on her feet, yawning, and Jane wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Come on, we'll all get our fair share of rest and explore everything in the morning." She led you all forward into the cottage, whose door stuck a little at first, but after she shoved it solidly with her shoulder, it opened to reveal a warm looking home.

The pink light crept through the window, revealing a room with a table and four chairs and a fireplace along the right side wall. A large tub--for bathing or for laundry--stood in the corner with another bench close to it. Beside that were two doors, which both led to rooms with two mattresses each. Tools were either scattered on the table or hung from the ceiling rafters, along with pots and some dried herbs. All in all, it looked cozy and homey, and you were more than ready to take your shoes off and sleep the next few days away.

When all of you had recovered from your long trek, Jane informed you that there was a village a little longer than a half day's walk from here where you could trade and get any supplies you could need.

"With how you're shooting up, John, we'll need to make you some new clothes soon!" Jane smiled, ruffling your hair.

Jade was given the task of making gardens both in front of the house and off to the side in the clearing, where she took the seeds Jane had brought and planted herbs, vegetables, and wheat. It was a small field, but it'd be enough to sustain the three of you with a little extra to trade in the fall. 

You became the main hunter while Jane set about fixing up the house. It was easy for you three to fall into a pattern of working, washing, mending and eating. You'd all get up in the morning, and after a light breakfast, would then leave to do what you needed. At night after dinner, you'd all sit around the fire and chat before heading off to bed and starting it all over again the next day.

"Joooohn!" Jade sang, skipping over to where you were fixing some snare traps. You looked up, seeing her absolutely covered in dirt from head to toe.

"Jade, you look so gross!" You giggled, shooting a glance at the cottage door that stood wide open. "Jane's gonna make you take a bath if she sees you!"

Jade just shrugged, plopping herself down on the ground next to you. "Doesn't matter. I'll just get dirty again anyways. Oh! What I came over here to ask you about. Hey," She looks at you full on, green eyes bright as she wiggled her eyebrows. "Since it's so nice today...can I feel the wind?"

"Really?" You perk up a bit, forcing back a smile as a soft wind picks up around you. "We haven't done that in forever!"

"I know, that's why I asked you, silly!" She frowns, shoving you on the shoulder. She was so stern sometimes that you forgot she was only 13. "Can we? Please?"

You glance once more at the cottage, then nod, setting down your snares and standing up. Jade squeals, clapping her hands and following you on bouncing feet over to the side of the cottage closer to the trees. Grinning from ear to ear, she settles in front of you, holding both hands out expectantly. 

"Ready?" You whisper conspiratorially, taking her hands in yours.

"Ready." She answers, face alight with excitement.

You close your eyes, and almost instantly, you can feel your body lighten and relax as the wind sweeps around you. Instead of being dragged down by someone as you normally would while flying, you allow the wind to sweep around her as well, sifting through Jade the same way it runs through you--

\--And then you're both soaring, flying, up high with the warm drafts of air from the chimney, and you ride them up until you're both high in the sky. You can feel Jade's excitement, but neither of you can say anything because you _are_ the wind. You're the gusts swirling around the clouds, the puffs from under the bird's wings, the breeze playing along the tops of the trees. 

Pure elation. That's the only way you could ever hope to describe what this feels like. You and the breeze are one, and you love it.

Jade allows another couple laps around the clearing before you can feel her excitement course anew, and you feel it more than you hear her say, _"My turn, my turn, my turn!"_

You two sink down to the ground a bit quicker than you would have if you were truly in control of your descent, but the eagerness from Jade to get to her own element trumps your controls. As soon as your feet land, you feel rooted to the spot, sensing that the ground runs much, much deeper than you thought.

You can feel Jade's hands gripping yours once more, can feel yourself settling back into your bones, and as she giggles, your senses light up with awareness.

Each tree around you is moving and dancing in the breeze that you stirred up, and you can feel them growing. Absorbing the sunlight, getting what little water from the dirt there is, stretching _up up up_ to the sun.

"Jade...there's more than there was last time." You whisper, your eyes still closed as you try and drink it in. "Have you always been able to feel so much?" The grass is whispering below you, and you feel like you can hear some seedlings from her garden singing back.

"I could ask you the same thing!" She responds, and you know without looking that she's sticking her tongue out. It feels weird to be back in your body--you'd much rather be out there, flying, _flying away, in the sky_ \--but she probably felt the same with no deep connection to the earth.

"Seems like we both have some new tricks." You grin, opening your eyes to find her staring back at you. She's got that look on her face that she only has when she's using magic, and you could swear her eyes are lighting up from within.

"John! Jade! Lunch!" Jane calls out from the cottage, and with a snap, you're brought back to your own body, the connection between you and Jade severed. You take a deep breath, shaking your head, and she begins cackling, flopping back on the grass.

"We gotta do that more often." Jade says, still laughing a bit as she stares at the sky. "I missed seeing the world from up high."

"Wait till a storm's coming." You grin, pulling her up when she extends her hand. "That's when the wind gets extra fun." She laughs and pulls you along by your hand, and it's most definitely her doing that a few vines have crept up around your legs, winding their way around your calves under your pants.

You leave them there the rest of the day.

All in all, things ran as smoothly as they had when you lived at the farm. The weather steadily grew warmer, and Jade announced on the three week anniversary of you living there that the tomatoes and potatoes were ready to pick.

Jane stared at her a full minute before finally asking, "Are you sure?"

"Positive!" Jade grinned back, gesturing over her shoulder. She had Jane tie her hair back in a braid, but flyaways were still all over the place. "I just talked to them every day, and they're ready to go! Pumpkins should be good in the next few days, they wanted to take a little more time."

You laughed, high-fiving Jade while making plans to harvest, and over your chatter, you could hear Jane mumbling behind you, "But they shouldn't even be in season yet…"

Your first trip into town was not long after, and you returned with some money (from selling the herbs) and bundles of fabric so Jane could add onto and mend your clothes. You and Jade were really getting taller. 

One night, as Jane was busy sewing you a new pair of pants while you and Jade chatted about stories, the breeze rushed through the open window, almost putting out the fire.

"John!" Jane warned, frowning at you, but you ignored her. The wind had an air of panic about it, a sense of urgency. And then you heard it--someone breathing hard about twenty feet from the cottage.

"Someone's here." You whipped around, standing quickly. Jade jumped up quickly after you, grabbing the stick she had been whittling.

With everyone silent and staring at the door, you could hear their heavy footsteps, heels dragging across the grass. Without any more warning, the door was thrown open, and Jade let out a terrifying yell as she rushed the intruder.

He screamed in return, a high pitched yell that almost classified as a squawk, and tumbled out of the doorway back into the darkness. Jade took a few more steps before jumping on him, landing square on his chest and knocking him backwards onto the ground.

You ran after her as he wheezed, the point of her stick against his throat. Jane ran after you, eyes wide.

"Who are you?" Jade demanded, eyes narrowed threateningly. "How did you find this place?"

He only continued wheezing, and finally, Jane stepped around your side, moving so she could see the man's face clearly. She gasped, and Jade looked up at her in surprise, but kept her stick pointed at him.

Your name is John Egbert, you're living in a cottage in the woods, and for the first time, you're learning that Jane has a cousin.


	5. The Runaway Cousin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _From your slanted view see the morning dew,_   
>  _Sink into the soil, watch the water boil._   
>  _They won't see me run, who can blame them?_   
>  _They never look to see me fly, so I never have to lie._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no one had last names in medieval times right? right. cool.

"Jake?" Jane breathes, eyes wide in the darkness. 

On the ground, the man stills, breathing finally returned to normal. "Jane? Is that you?" He struggles to sit up, and with a nudge from your foot to her ribs, Jade finally slides off of him. He scrambles up, a disbelieving look on his face. "Goodness, Jane! I haven't seen you in years!"

"Jake, you scoundrel, you gave us a scare!" Jane's half mad, half laughing, and she throws her arms around him as he laughs with her. Jade shoots you a look that says she's super confused, and you have to agree with her.

"What are you doing here?" She asks, pulling back, and he gives her one more pat on the back.

"Hiding, really." He rubs the back of his neck as if he's embarrassed. "The soldiers were coming round to my town asking about magic users and Grandma got a little too worried. Told them I had left on a hunting trip and I was to stay here for a few months." Then he frowns. "How did you know about this place? I figured only me and my dad knew about this hunting outpost!"

"It happens to be my cabin!" Jane grinned proudly. "My mother and I built it. We came here to hide like you did, unfortunately. Someone in town tipped them off about us."

At the word 'us', Jake seems to remember that there's two more of you there. "Oh! You must think me so rude. I'm Jake, I used to live in Englishtown. It's a couple days walk from here." He offered his hand to you, which you shook. Jake was probably the same age as Jane, though a good foot taller than her, maybe a head taller than you.

"I'm John, this is my sister with Jade. We've been friends with Jane for the past few years." You told him, and Jade waved at him, "Sorry about the spear!"

He gives Jade a wary smile, but tells you, "That's crazy! I didn't know Jane was friends with you. Then again, it's been quite a few years since I've spoken to her!"

"As cousins, we don't get to see each other much." Jane says quickly, giving Jake a pointed look. 

Your mind blanks a bit. "Cousin?" You don't remember Jane ever mentioning a cousin. Jade seems to be trying to figure out what Jane's look could mean as well.

"Uh--Yes sir!" Jake grins again hurriedly, puffing his chest out a bit. "We used to see each other a whole lot more often, but, you know, times change." He smiles over at her, and after a moment more of watching, she grins back with an unfamiliar look in her eye, then gestures inside. 

"Come on in! Fire's still hot, I'm sure we have some food leftover." 

Jake leans down to pick up the pack that got knocked aside when Jade tackled him, pulling out a loaf of bread. "No bother! I already ate on the way here. In fact, I might have some things we can add to your stores!" He follows Jane in, and trailing behind them, Jade shoots you another look.

"Why does he have that sort of accent?"

You smirk, watching as Jake gestures wildly with his hands. "Who knows?"

Jade and Jane begin sharing a room after Jake insists he couldn't threaten an honest woman's reputation by sleeping in the same room as her. You think it's strange, since they're related, and you and Jade had even shared a bed without a problem before, but he's very adamant about it. That leaves you and him in a room together, and you learn a lot about him over the next few days.

He's 16, almost 17, has never lived by himself before, thinks he knows a lot about hunting, is very loud and defensive of his favorite stories, and he loves wild berries. Oh, and he's a magic user like you guys, on the run.

"Light magic?" Jade's eyes light up in the firelight. She's seated on the ground next to you while you two talk to Jane and Jake, who are sharing the bench while Jane mends his woolen socks. 

"Indeed!" He smiles, holding out a hand. Inside of his palm, a small ball of light grows, almost as bright as the fire. After a few seconds, it sputters out, and he smiles sheepishly. "I've got the brightness down, just not the size."

"That's so cool!" Jade answers nonetheless. "We've all got magic! How awesome is this?" She grins over at you and you return the smile before turning back to Jake.

"How are things in the villages? We've been here for a while now, so we haven't heard much."

Jake picks up the stick Jade had finally carved into a spear, picking at the smooth wood. "Not too good, mate. Ever since the flyers started going up, the soldiers have really been giving everyone a hard time. Everyone's hard pressed to reveal any information they have, and some are starting to say things just to get the soldiers to stop riding them so hard." He grimaced. "But, you know, there's a kernel of truth in every rumor."

Jane places a hand on his shoulder, which he shrugs off quickly with a forced smile. "But we keep on keepin' on, as they say!" He sits up a bit straighter, gesturing to you two with his spear. "What about you two? I don't think you ever mentioned where you were from!"

"Near the capital city." You answer when Jade looks to you. "Our home was one of the ones that got destroyed when the Dersites first attacked, so we left and went to live with Jane."

"What about your parents? Why weren't your parents with you?"

"Our parents are dead." Jade frowns at him, and thankfully, the topic isn't brought up again. Neither is the topic where any of you came from, which seems to be some sort of sore spot for all of you, and through an unspoken agreement, none of you ask too much about each other's past.

Somehow, the four of you just click. There's the first few hours that are awkward, yeah, as you all get used to each other, but soon it's like you've all known each other for years. It's like you don't even have to adjust for the way Jake will talk over you, just as he doesn't have to adjust to the way Jade will finish his sentences. His habits seem familiar, and you just chalk it up to him being Jane's cousin. Of anyone, she seems the weirdest around him, but it has been a while since they've seen each other, apparently. 

Between the four of you, things run even smoother. Summer means more plants that Jade has ready to harvest, and when you two aren't helping harvest, you and Jake make regular trips into the town to sell what you don't need. Jane usually sends you with a list of what you'll need for when winter comes, and you think sometimes that if it wasn't for her, you all might not have lasted this long!

The warm weather allows you to get more done during the day, and between hunting and chopping firewood, you and Jake begin making plans for maybe building another house altogether. Nevermind the fact that neither of you really know how to build a house, but plans are fun to make! You have no idea how long you're going to be here anyways.

"I'd like to get a couple chickens, if we could." He muses one day, sweat dripping off his forehead. It's mid summer now, well into July if Jane's makeshift calendar is correct, so the days are almost to that unbearably hot point. "It'd be a lot easier than having to buy eggs every time we go into town!"

"Incoming!" Jade shrieks, and that's all the time you have before a medium sized tree comes crashing down, taking up about half of your clearing. Jake, once he's recovered his breath forty yards away, yells over to her.

"What the devil was that for?!"

She grins, crawling over the trunk, barefoot as always. "I needed more room for the garden, and this one volunteered to move! Its branches were dying out anyways. I'll probably move a couple of its neighbors soon!" She points over her shoulder to where there is now a suspiciously large patch of upturned dirt. "So, more room to plant and more firewood for us!"

You start laughing, but Jake only shakes his head. "If she can uproot the forest whenever she wants, Jane _definitely_ better let me get a few blasted chickens."

Come the first week of August, Jade's doubled the area of the clearing and you and Jake are laden down with vegetables to sell and some extra change for chickens. He talks nearly the whole way there about how his grandma had chickens and the best way to care for them, and you let him talk. The breeze is dancing warmly around you, and you feel almost as if there's not a care in the world.

Your favorite buyers greet you as you two turn up with your cart, and you're soon busied by selling. As the hours pass, your attention span begins to run a little thin, and your eyes begin to wander as Jake continues working. 

There really are quite a few more people in the town square than usual. Some almost seem to be carrying building supplies, and you can't help but wonder what it's for.

"Hey, Henry, what are they going to be building?" You ask one of the villagers as you hand him a few potatoes and accept his coins.

"Over there? Oh! Y'all are new around here, you wouldn't know!" He grins as he turns back to face you, drawing Jake's attention as well. "They're getting ready for the harvest festival! They add on to the main building to accommodate the folks who want to dance, sometimes build it outside if it's fittin' to be nice out. There's tons of food, it's always loads of fun!" Then he smiles wider. "Say, why don't you all come? Invite your families! All are welcome to celebrate."

Your face lights up, but Jake is speaking first, "Do people from all over usually come?"

"Nah, it's not that big." He winks. "Just us villagers and the few farmers who live around these parts."

"When is it?" You ask before Jake can speak again, and the man turns back to you.

"Few weeks still! We do it usually the first week of the harvest, halfway through September, and then a bigger one at the end of October, just before All Hallow's Eve. Gives folks a chance to relax before and after the hard work gets done. You're welcome to both, if you like."

"Definitely." You respond, ignoring the worried look Jake's shooting your way. Henry answers a few more questions about what to bring, and then you and Jake are selling the last of your things as the sun goes down.

"Are you sure we should really go to this?" Jake asks as you begin heading back. Once you're far away enough from the village, Jake produces a small orb of light in front of you, lighting up the forest floor as you walk. "I mean, the four of us are in fact wanted men and ladies! Who's to say there won't be soldiers there?"

You roll your eyes, avoiding a large stick. "Jake, anyone who would have wanted us would have expected us to be farther away by now. I doubt anyone's still looking for us, anyways."

Jake sighs, a noise that comes from him pretty often, if you're honest. "Whatever you say, mate! We'll see what Jane has to say. She's quite the cautious lady, I doubt she won't share my worries!"

"We'll see." You agree, giving him a smirk as you direct the wind to ruffle his hair a bit. He shouts loudly in protest, disturbing the chickens in the cart behind you, who begin clucking in earnest as Jake tries to quiet them.

Your name is John, you've been living in the woods for four months now, and as much as you love your friends, you think it'd be kind of nice to meet some other people.


	6. Celebration Preparation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Resolutions and lovers in the kitchen,_   
>  _Love is clueless and destiny is wishing._

Your name is John, you're covered in dirt, and currently you're celebrating with your sister because Jane just agreed that you all could go to the festivals.

"We need to finish the chores first!" She tells you, exasperation in her tone but a smile on her face. "The first one is only one night, so I'm not worried about that, but the next one is four days! Four days long--"

"There's gonna be music!" Jade is crooning, grabbing your hands and spinning you both around in circles. "I haven't heard music in forever!--"

"We'll need to be sure to keep everything in top shape before we even think about that little vacation--"

"And dancing and tons of desserts and maybe story telling--"

"Oh, shucks." Jane shakes her head, unable to keep her smile from spreading as she watches Jade. "Who am I kidding? We deserve to relax a bit. This'll be fun!"

Jade gives up on you and turns and grabs Jake's hands, forcing him to spin with her. Reluctantly, he follows along, but soon he's laughing as well and adding some flourish to her unpracticed and definitely made up dance moves.

Jane sits down, a small smile on her face in the firelight. "Gods know we could all use some fun to take our mind off things."

You spare a glance at her, wondering if this is why her smile has been strained the past couple weeks, but then the breeze has tugged your attention away, pulling you back up and throwing yourself at Jade, who screeches with laughter and forms a circle with the two of you, skipping and hollering and making up a rhyme as she goes.

_"Dancing and singing and desserts galore! We're all yelling out for more, more, more!"_

"We're going to need some nicer clothes, I'll bet." Jane stands, brushing off her skirts.

"Only for the last night of the second one!" Jake shouts over his shoulder as Jade continues whipping you all around. The wind dances around your feet, and you may hover a few steps instead of skipping. "That's the fancy one!"

_"Dancing and singing and desserts galore!--"_

"Well, I'll need to get started on those soon, then! I hope we have enough--"

Jake's hand whips out lightning fast, grabbing Jane as the three of you go around again and pulling her into the circle. She gasps a bit, then her hearty chuckle is bubbling forth, and you can't help but laugh back.

Jake whistles, and suddenly there's a few orbs of light bouncing above your head, casting a dreamy ambiance about the room. You throw your head back and join Jade in her silly song, feeling freer than you have in months.

_"We're all yelling out for more, more, more!"_

 

You and Jade throw yourselves into your work for the next month and a half, hoping that by working harder, the time will pass faster. You and Jake are making almost weekly trips into town because of how many plants Jade has to harvest. Jane tells you to get canning supplies next time you come back, and Jake makes sure to make a deal with the miller in town so you can make enough flour for the winter.

He agrees, (especially because you have apples that aren't quite in season yet) and you and Jake take a couple days where you take all of the wheat Jade had accumulated and help the miller turn it into flour. It's an interesting process, really, but mind numbing and exhausting, and you find yourself watching the way the water turns the wheel as day fades into night. It's then you notice that the miller's daughter has been close enough to the water all day. She's been paying pretty close attention to it, too. Isn't that weird? Well, not that you really knew everything there is to know about how mills work, but the way the miller explained it, the water just turns the wheel so that the grinder works.

That stream doesn't quite seem big enough for how quickly the wheel turns.

Sure enough, as soon as she heads inside, the wheel slows, and you think you might have found your first magic user in hiding. Of course, being the proper gentleman that you are, you don't say anything, but you file the information away in your head for when you know you'll need it in a few years.

You and Jake return home with pounds and pounds of flour, and Jade giggles excitedly when you tell her that night.

"Just a few more years." She grins, twirling some long grass around her fingers. "Just a few more years of training, and we'll have it all back."

Jane is hard at work clearing storage space for the canned foods you'll soon have when she's not working on your outfits for the festival. She finishes Jake's first, a simple green shirt made out of nicer fabric with gold trimming around the collar and sleeves. Jade's comes next, a paler green skirt and shirt with some sort of vine design around the bottom of the skirt. The color makes her eyes pop, and it takes all three of you to convince her that she can't wear it every day. Jane tells you all that she'll make the alterations between one festival and the next, just in case any of you grow anymore. Jade in particular had grown a lot over the summer, only a couple inches shorter than you now. Jake, who would be turning 17 in a few months, would probably only grow for a couple more years while you still had quite a few ahead of you.

Two days before the first festival, Jane finishes your dress shirt, and you look up from where you had been zoning out by the fire.

"Oh, John, look how blue it is!" Jade squeals, actually setting aside the flower crown she had been braiding. You can only stand quickly, mouth wide open. The color blue was as deep as the sky, maybe even the same color as your eyes.

"Put it on!" Jade shouts, and Jane gives her a look before turning to you. Jade, in her 13 years, still had not mastered the art of the inside voice. 

"I do need to make sure it fits right." She smirks, gesturing to you. "Go ahead!"

You pull off your work shirt, careful not to get any more dirt on your hands so that you don't mess up your new shirt. After you pull it on, you can already tell the color stands out brightly against your skin, just as it had done for Jade. While Jane and Jake had tanned from the sun, you and Jade were darker, and from working outside all summer, your skin was really showing the tan lines that Jade often made fun of you for.

"He does look rather good in that color, doesn't he?" Jake muses, rubbing his chin as he watches Jane adjust the bottom hem. "Quite a bummer those aren't the kingdom colors anymore."

"I think he looks like a prince." Jade grins, shooting you a look. You roll your eyes at her, but Jane is speaking before you can say anything back.

"It does look quite princely, don't you think?" She leans back, hands on her hips as she smiles at her work. "Good to know my embroidery is up to par!"

Jade shouts back at her, asking if she can have even more vines on her skirt, and Jake's laughing at her, lights dancing a little farther out from the fire than normal.

You're John, you look like the prince you secretly are, and your sister is absolutely the least subtle person on this planet, probably. 

(But you have to agree. You truly do look like the heir, and you can't wait until you are again.)


	7. The First Festival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _They call kids like us vicious and carved out of stone,_   
>  _But for what we've become, we just feel more alone._   
>  _Always weigh what I've lost against what I left,_   
>  _So progress report: I am missing you to death._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> whoaaa surprise double update because i couldn't wait

Your name is John, you're about to leave to go to the first festival you've been to in 7 years, and you don't think you've ever been cleaner in your entire life.

"Are you sure you washed behind your ears?" Jane is asking, pulling again at Jade's shirt.

"Yes." Jade groans in response, wiggling out of her grasp. "And my fingers, and my toes, and everything else you asked me to wash!" She _humphs_ , sitting down on a chair. "We're all clean, you've like, triple checked that we're all wearing decent clothes, can we go yet?"

Even though the first festival didn't require fancy clothes, Jane still insisted that you all wore something that didn't have dozens of dirt stains on it. This was particularly hard for Jade, whose clothes almost looked like they were made to be brown, but Jane dug something out of where Jade had tossed it under a bed and made her wear that. Jade's hair was in a braid, yours and Jake's were as combed as it could be, and Jane sighed in defeat.

"Well, we're all about as nice as I could make us. I guess we can head out!" She glances over at you, "Are you sure you don't mind carrying the pie?"

"Not at all!" You grin, holding the pie tin carefully in your hands. Anyways, you'd probably float it most of the way there, but she didn't have to know that.

"Then let's go!" Jane grins, and Jade gives out a loud _whoop!_ in response. You all grab your traveling cloaks and head out the door, walking down the now familiar path to the village. 

It was still a good half day's walk, so you set out around 1 in the afternoon. Jade was chattering nearly the whole way there, asking Jake if he'd ever been to a festival and going on about what all she thought would be happening there. Her talking was enough to make the time pass by quickly, and the sun shining through the trees was warm, but not unpleasantly so. It was midway through September now, and everyone would be getting ready to harvest. Jade, however, had harvested nearly everything and was looking to plant an entirely new crop and have it ready to go in the next two weeks.

The sun had just begun its' descent when the outermost buildings came into sight, and as always, you and Jake checked both ways before hopping out of the woods and onto the main road that took you into town. There were a few people ahead of you, so you knew at least you all wouldn't be the first to arrive.

The outer edges of the town were a lot quieter than when you and Jake came to sell things, but as you got closer to the center, you could hear the cheers of the people gathered there. And underneath all the noise--

"Music!" Jade squealed, her hood falling back off her head as she bounced. Her flower crown stayed firmly on her head, much to your confusion. "Oh man, I'm gonna dance all night!"

"Just promise me you'll keep your shoes on?" Jane asked with the tone of someone who knew their request was going to be ignored. Sure enough, Jade only grinned at her, but you were close enough to the town square that Jane didn't bother with her stern look. She was smiling at the building ahead of you, and you looked as well, giving the breeze one last final twist around your legs before sending it off for the night.

The building was large, larger than any of the houses, and almost looked like the giant stables you had seen a few times as a young boy back at the palace. The large double doors were open wide, letting the warm torchlight from inside the building spill out onto the cobblestone square. Inside, some people were already dancing while more stood around the edges where tables were covered in food and drink of all sorts.

"Thank the gods, I'm starving." Jake groans, putting a hand on his stomach. As soon as you're there, Jane quickly gathers up your coats, and then Jade is off, sprinting for the dance floor. Jake gives Jane his coat without a second glance and heads off immediately for the food tables, eyes focused only on the food in front of him. You laugh and give Jane a look, but she shakes her head with a smile.

"No, I've got these. Go ahead and put the pie down, and then you can go have fun."

You grin back at her, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek. "You have fun, too!" You back away, winking even as she rolls her eyes, and you turn before you can run into someone and accidentally drop the pie.

Once you turn around, Jade is already in a dancing circle with a few girls her age from the village and Jake is laughing it up with a few of the other merchants. You make your way over to him, grinning as he claps a hand down on your shoulder.

The smells combined with the lively music puts a warm feeling in your chest, so you and Jake don't say no when one of the men offers you a cup of mead. It's kind of bitter, and weirdly bubbly, but it makes your stomach feel even warmer, so you go ahead and suffer through the taste as you walk around and chat with people. Jake continued to make friends with anyone he talks to, his loud laugh always audible over the noise of the crowd. Jane has a cup of wine in her hand and is talking to a few of the mothers keeping eyes on the young children, a strange smile on her face. Jade has danced with nearly everyone on the dance floor so far, and by the time you finish your third cup of mead, she drags you behind her, and you don't have the heart to say no.

The mead has made your head and chest light, so you laugh along with Jade as you two try and fail to learn the dances the others are teaching you. Eventually, you get it, and a young girl close to your age grabs your hand, so you spin her around before falling into line with the other dancers.

It's well after dark outside, and you've danced with quite a few girls, before the music fades out. Turning with the rest of the crowd, you look up to the tiny stage where an old man is standing next to Henry, who's grinning and waving a mug of mead--and definitely slopping some on the ground next to him.

"Hullo!" Henry calls out, and the rest of the crowd calls back good-naturedly, moving to form a sort of semi circle around the front of the stage when he jumps down. "How is everyone doing tonight? Everything going well?"

"It's fantastic!" You hear a familiar shriek from beside you, and you turn to find Jade's next to you, cheeks flushed. She winks and grabs your arm with hers, interlinking them at the elbows before turning back to Henry, who's trying to get everyone to settle down again.

"Now, now, you all know what time it is! I see you back there Roran, don't you grumble at me!" The crowd laughs, and you guess Henry must be pretty popular around town if everyone seems to be tolerating him like this! Then again, everyone else might be just as buzzed as you are. There's a ton of barrels of mead that haven't even been opened yet! Shrugging it off, you and Jade make your way to the front of the crowd, sliding into place between the few other short people so you can see.

"As is customary with our festivals, we have a time set aside at the end of the night for storytelling!" Henry continues, and Jade bounces a little beside you. "Storytelling is an important part of our culture, out here in our tiny villages and small farming towns! People closer to the cities may forget, but we never will!" His voice is loud, warm and inviting, and you can feel yourself getting excited, too.

"Do you know why?" He asks the crowd before making his voice quieter. "Because kings and emperors alike may come and go. Seasons change and people die but you know what never will? Our stories! Our memories! Our tales of old! Because we will tell our children, and they will tell their children, and so on and so forth so that none may ever truly die!" He grins out at the crowd, voice loud and booming again. "So who's ready for a story?"

The crowd all shouted at once, Jade in particular bouncing up and down while you shouted along as well. After laughing a bit, Henry turned and gestured forward the old man on the stage, leaving him to walk forward while the crowd yelled. Henry sat down on the edge of the stage, and as the old man raised a hand, everyone quieted down.

"Who all is familiar with the tale of how Skaia became its' own kingdom apart from Derse, otherwise known as the Great War?" The man asked the crowd. You and Jade raise your hands, but surprisingly, you can see not a lot of other people have their hands raised. The man nods like he expected this, and steps forward a bit more into the circle, leaning heavily on his walking stick.

"I see. As is my duty as the storyteller of this town, it is my job to ensure that our history is not forgotten. It's been too long since one of our most important stories, if not the most important, has been told. But all shall be corrected tonight." The man's voice is low and gravelly, and for some reason, he looks super familiar. For a minute, you wonder if he could have been from the castle like you are, but with a small giggle to yourself, you realize how ridiculous you sound. Man, maybe you had a little too much to drink!

"Long before the Dersites attacked, long before they were even an idea of a country, long before even the people of Prospit migrated here and brought us their magic, there was the land of Skaia. It has been here, it has always been here, and it always be. No matter who conquers and divides or renames our great kingdom, Skaia will survive." The man is interrupted by a few loud cheers, and in the back of John's mind, a small voice whispers, _there's future allies here._ After they die down, the man continues.

"It is the strongest and oldest entity in all the lands. Each new king or queen rules this land better than the one before it, entrusted with the divine right to rule, and to rule justly. When the Prospitians first came to our lands from across the great seas, many feared them and the power they had. Yet our king at the time, King Joffrey the Kind, knew mercy, and accepted them into our lands. Now, you'd be hard pressed to find someone who does not have a bit of Prospitian in them." He looked around the circle, and for a wild moment, you thought the old man winked at Jade. But then he was looking away again, speaking to the crowd, and you knew you must have imagined it.

"And so the people of our kingdom, with the power of the Prospitians combined with us Skaians, grew into magic. Not everyone could use it, but those who could became revered members of their community. Healers were in abundance, towns and cities were built more structurally sound than ever before, and our crops were bountiful. And with our magic grew our strength, and soon we became the strongest land in the realm."

He looks around the circle again, voice growing lower so that a few people behind you pressed forward. "Eight years ago was not the first time the Dersites attacked. No, oh no, it happened once before. Hundreds of years ago, maybe thousands, the Dersites used to live with us in Skaia peacefully. They were an angry people, battle-prone, just as they still are today. And when our Good King accepted the Prospitians with open arms, they were angry. They felt the Prospitians were an inferior race, undeserving of Skaia's wealth. Together, under one they called Noir, a rebellion started and grew in the shadows. 

"Our king grew old, and in his old age, he began in haste to teach his sons everything he knew. His wife had passed before him, and his new Lady, a Prospitian, grew worried. She was with her own child, and knew that as soon as the king passed, many would try to attack either his son or her and her child. So she took notes as he taught his first son, and continued to take note of his teachings even as her own son was born and began growing. King Joffrey passed two days after his first son had come of age, and the kingdom wept." Here, many people bowed their heads, but you looked on in excitement. Your favorite part of the story was coming up soon!

"Noir's rebellion continued to grow, and just as the prince was about to be crowned, he was killed in his sleep. The Prospitian Lady escaped, taking with her her son, and they fled into the forest." His voice grew louder again. "The land fell into turmoil in her absence. Without a leader, and without any one candidate that a majority stood behind, the land fell into chaos and war. However, there was still hope."

The old man grinned. "There is always hope in Skaia. A young page had escaped the castle, ran away from the fighting, and in his flight, found the Prospitian and her son. She was raising him in secret, preparing him for the day he would take back his crown. And so the page, soon to become a squire, began teaching the boy everything he knew about sword fighting. Together, they grew in strength of body and mind, and the heir promised his friend that he would be his most trusted knight."

The old man was now pacing around the circle. "And from there, his inner circle grew. A young witch, living in the woods as well. She added her magic and power to group, and taught the heir to use his own to the best of his abilities. A young mystic, who could see the future. A maid and another page that had escaped the castle, and trained to fight as well while giving him inside secrets of the passageways of the castle. Finally, two children of Dersite royalty came to join them, bringing with them information of sympathizers who would help their fight in the kingdom. The eight became known as the Heroes of Skaia, and when they were ready, having gathered enough to form an army, including the Twelve Mages, approached the castle. The heir strode into the room, head held high, and announced his name and birthright. At once, the scholars in the throne room knew it to be true, and fell to their knees."

The man spun again, the edge of his robe flickering daringly close to the fire from a torch. For a second, it looked like the fire literally moved out of the way, but you knew it must have been a trick of the light. "But the others trying to claim the throne were enraged! And so they challenged him to a duel. The heir was prepared, and was ready for this. He had waited his entire life for this moment, everyone who had aided him along the way had helped him to prepare, and it was his moment to take back his kingdom." The man's voice grew in volume as he talked, some people from the crowd cheering along with him. "He cut down every foe, leaving them to tend to their wounds as he made his way to his throne. When no more stood in his way, he turned and raised his warhammer to the sky. Crying out loud enough that those in the courtyard heard him, he proclaimed, 'People of Skaia! Your heir has returned, and peace shall be restored to the land!' And so it was."

His voice now returned to a normal volume, you began looking more closely at him. How was he this familiar? "The Dersites were banished to go and form their own kingdom and leave ours forever, but little did the heir know that he had made lifelong enemies. For ever since then, they have plotted their return, and now, they may have succeeded."

"But!" His voice rang out clear and true, drawing eyes back to him. "As I said before, there is always hope! Before the Diviner of the inner circle passed, she prophesized their return. To her dearest followers, she bestowed this wisdom unto them."

Your eyes were traveling again, having heard this story a hundred times from your own nursery maid. Across the circle, something flashed, like a sword caught in the dim light, and you squinted, confused. But there was no sword to be found, only a pair of bright red eyes staring right back at you.

Oddly colored eyes weren't actually all that odd in Skaia. The Prospitians had crazy colored eyes and hair, and many of those traits had been passed down through generations. Jade's eyes were a prime example of this. Because seriously, who had heard of electric green eyes?

But the red eyes just kept staring. They held your gaze, not quite challenging, not quite defiant, but not backing down either. And that look seemed familiar. So you didn't stop staring back, either. You couldn't tell a lot about the person from here, but the eyes looked young, proud, yet like they had seen a lot. And through the staring, the man's voice continued around you.

"The eight Heroes of Skaia will return when the kingdom needs them most."

Something inside of you clicks. Like a key slotting into place, something feels familiar and comforting about this gaze. Have you ever seen eyes like this before?

_How could you forget eyes as deep and warm as those?_

"In its' darkest hour, Skaia will revive the heroes, born anew once more, and together, they will gather their followers and rise again to defend the kingdom from the void that threatens to envelope it. And now, almost a thousand years later, we wait."

The eyes watch you carefully, blink once, and you think you see the hint of a smile as the man concludes his story.

"The heir will rise again, and we shall be saved." He bowed his head, falling into silence.

Jake's the first to start clapping. You'd know that loud cheer anywhere, and soon, others are following suit, cheering louder than they had all night. Jade jumps up and down beside you, jostling you just enough that you have to look away from the eyes to make sure you don't run into anyone as you stumble, and when you look back up, they're gone.

A couple more torches are lit as people realize how dark it got during the story, and you search wildly for anyone with red eyes. The rest of the crowd begins moving to leave as well, milling about in the large building. To your disappointment, you can't find anyone with those eyes, and soon enough, Jane's grabbing your arm and handing you your traveling cloak and a now empty pie tin.

"Probably have to make a few more next time!" She's saying, oblivious to your desperate search. "It was gone within an hour!"

Jake's over in another minute, still laughing loudly about something. He puts his coat on without complaint, grabbing your shoulder hard as he pulls you back towards Jane once again. "Why do you keep looking around like that? You look like a scared rabbit!" He laughs even louder then, "Johnny Rabbit! Why didn't I think of it before!"

Okay, Jake might have had a lot more mead than you did.

Jade comes bouncing over before you can make your escape, babbling about all the people she met tonight. She forgoes the coat, still talking too much to really think about how chilly it might have gotten outside. Jane starts moving you all towards the exit, and with one last forlorn look around, you think that maybe you imagined the eyes. Surely you would have noticed someone with red eyes before then, right? They would have been easy to spot!

_Why does it feel like you're forgetting someone?_

Downcast, you start the long walk back, only halfway listening to Jade continuing to prattle on about everything that happened and to Jane trying to keep Jake from using lights until their further into the forest. Jake's still laughing about something ("But a rabbit! Have you seen his teeth? Well, they've straightened out a bit since I met him, but honestly!") and Jade's still talking about the musicians and the girls she danced with and the boys she danced with and which ones smelled weird and the girl who didn't want to dance so they stood outside and talked and all about the different cakes she ate and how none were better than Jane's but they were "soooo good!" It's so late once you all get back that everyone goes straight to bed, even Jade, who's humming the last song played under her breath as she twirls her way to her room. 

Jake's snoring loudly as you finally settle down, you can't help but stare at the ceiling in disappointment, and for some reason, you feel like you're missing something important.


	8. Patience is a Virtue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _It comes back to you, it comes back to you,_   
>  _All the things that you had lost will find their way to you._   
>  _It comes back to you, it comes back to you._   
>  _Looking back into the past and I can see it through:_   
>  _It comes back to you._

It's been a few days since the festival, you're still kind of feeling weird about the red eyes, and Jade has finally come down enough from her festival high to notice that something's up.

She sits down hard enough in front of you to make you jump, startling out of your daze where you had been staring at the pond.

"Okay. Spill." She demands, leveling you with a glare you've dubbed her 'I'm not taking no for an answer' stare.

"Spill what?" You ask innocently, trying to act like you hadn't still been brooding over it. Why should it even matter? It's not like it really mattered. Okay, maybe you had dreamed about them that night, and about the person they might be connected to, and about how you could have sworn you knew them from somewhere...

Nope. Just as it's on the tip of your tongue, it's gone again, and you sigh as you look down at your feet.

"It's nothing, Jade." You tell her. For a second, you think she might let up, but then she cocks her head to the side, determined to see this through.

"It's not nothing! You've been weird since the festival." She frowns. "I thought you had fun?"

"I did!" You assure her. "I really did, it was great!"

She pauses, and when you just stare at her, she waves her hand, leaning her other arm on her knee. "But…" She prompts, and you sigh again.

"But...I dunno." You groan, looking over your shoulder really quick. Jane's in the house, Jake's off hunting probably, and you're on the other side of the pond close to the garden. (It's honestly more of a field, now. Way too big to be a garden, that's for sure.) No one could overhear you, but you still lean in regardless. Jade leans in as well, eyes widening a bit as she gets ready for something she obviously expects to be a big deal.

"Okay, you know how I asked you a few months ago what all you remembered about the castle?" She nods, and you scrub your eyes with one hand. Man, restless sleep was not a thing you were a fan of, but you kept having these weird dreams that always woke you up. "At the festival the other night, I saw someone, and I could have sworn I knew them, but I couldn't figure out where from!" You groan in frustration, "I have no idea where I could have seen them before, so that's gotta be the only place, right?"

"Really?" Jade looks a little amazed, and even more amazing is the fact that her voice is quiet. "But, should we be worried? Someone from the castle might be someone out to get us, wouldn't they be?"

"Maybe not." You shrug, refusing to believe that whoever owns these red eyes were evil. They felt like anything but that. "They could have ran away like we did. Besides, they seemed nice."

"You talked to them?!" She shouted, and you immediately shush her, glancing again at the cottage.

"No! Shh, Jade!" She has the decency to look apologetic, so you sigh and continue, "No. I didn't talk to them. But they just felt...I dunno, familiar." You look down at your hands. "I can't really explain it."

There's a pause, then Jade asks, "Is it like with the windy thing?"

You look back up at her, confused. "What?"

"Like with the wind!" She blinks at you, like it should be obvious. "How you always know what it's trying to tell you even though to everyone else, talking to the wind sounds super crazy! Like how I just know when the plants are getting kind of thirsty or how when they want to go somewhere different. Gut feelings, you know? _Instincts_." She's grinning by the end of it, and once more, you're reminded that your sister is probably way smarter than she lets on.

"Yeah, I guess, like that." The more you think about it, the more it feels right. "Yeah. They just seemed familiar, and friendly. But I couldn't find them after everyone was leaving, and that was a huge bummer." You sigh, looking back up at the sky again. The wind was twisting above you, a little colder but still pleasant against your skin. "I can't stop thinking about where I could know them from."

"Maybe they'll be at the next festival!" Jade chirps, sitting up straighter. "That's the bigger one, right? Chances are you'll see them there!"

Jade is so great. She is so smart. Good sister, best friend.

"You're a genius!" You grin, leaning over to give her a quick hug that she laughs at but accepts. "You're totally right! Why didn't I think of that? I'll just see them at the next one and go talk to them! Duh." You smile at her. "How long until then, again?"

"Six weeks." She rolls her eyes. "Don't worry, we'll make it!" She adds quickly when you frown. "We'll just work super hard until then and the time will fly by!" Her eyes brighten up. "Speaking of which, do you want to help me with the pumpkins?!" Her smile is too wide to say no, so you let her drag you over to the pumpkin patch, and immerse yourself in work once again.

Jane's busy making sure you all will have warm enough clothes for the winter that's coming, and Jake's been busy trying to preserve as much meat as he can, so that leaves you and Jade to make the usual trips into town in order to sell your goods. With how well things are popping up now, you have to go almost every week, and you make enough money to buy all of the jars and cloth Jane could ever want. Safe to say, those six weeks go by fast!

About a week before the festival, Henry's come by again to buy as many of your potatoes as you can spare.

"What are you going to do with all of these?" Jade laughs, bundling them all up in a burlap sack he's brought with him.

"I got a lot of customers to feed!" He laughs, ruffling her hair that's falling out of its braid. "Surprised I haven't had you two in to stay at my tavern yet, with how often you're in town!"

"Oh, we don't live far from here." You answer, grinning. If only he knew! "So the walk back and forth isn't too bad!"

"Well I hope you're planning on staying in town for the duration of the festival!" Henry fake frowns, poking at Jade when she sticks her tongue out at him. "That pie your friend brought the last time was just enough to tease! I hope she's bringing more to this one as well!"

"She's planning on it!" Jade chirps, still counting potatoes as she talks and swatting away your hands when you try to help. "Though I don't know how she'll make more if she runs out, we won't have an oven close enough!"

Henry frowns for real this time, but immediately it shoots back into a smile, and he exclaims loud enough to pause both what you and Jade are doing. "By _jove,_ I've got an idea! Why don't you all stay in my tavern? If you help me out with the barrels of mead and she bakes enough pies, you can stay for free! There's four of you, right?" You and Jade nod eagerly, and he claps his hands. "I've got the perfect room for ya, right by the kitchens! It'll be perfect! Whaddya say?"

You and Jade glance at each other with excited grins. Jane has kind of become the leader and final-sayer of your group, but there's no doubt in your mind that she'd say yes to this!

"Yeah!" You grin back at Henry, shaking his hand. "We'll finish up our chores and probably come down the day before, if that works for you?"

"It's just peachy for me." He grins back, Jade laughing when he shakes her hand, too. "Can't wait to see all of ya! The second festival is where the real fun is." Once he's paid, he lugs his sack of potatoes back down the street, and Jade whirls at you with a manic grin.

"The real fun?! John, this last one was the _best time_ of my whole life! How is it ever gonna top that?!"

Sure enough, Jane agrees, and she has all of you working double time to prepare to head out early. Everything's taken care of the morning you're supposed to leave, and that gives you all just enough time to pack a few changes of clothes ("Your nicest ones, please! No dirt stains, and that means you too, Jade!"), a few extra baking pans ("No one ever has the right size"), and some snacks for the road. Jade's practically buzzing with excitement by the time Jake and you have packed, and Jane's warned her three times already not to work the bushes nearest the cottage into such a frenzy. ("Next thing you know, the ivy will be climbing in the windows!")

Once Jane casts a final look over everything, you all shoulder your packs and head out, Jade singing her festival song for the first twenty minutes. You trot along beside her, a wide smile on your face as the wind soars above you. You've got your blue shirt tucked tightly into your pack, and you're determined to find the person with red eyes.

How could you forget how easy he was to find?

Henry welcomes you all just before dinnertime with loud cheers, his wife rolling her eyes and shooing him out of the doorway. She's the one who shows you where your rooms are and tells you to come down to the kitchen whenever you all are ready for dinner. Jade's quick to claim the bed closer to the window, and Jane sets her pack down next to Jade's good naturedly before hurrying everyone downstairs to she can get a look at what she has to work with kitchen-wise.

"This oven...is the biggest oven I have ever seen." She almost whispers, icy blue eyes wide once you finally get down there. Jade laughs and slings an arm around her shoulders, whispering not-that-quietly in her ear.

"Best vacation ever, am I riiiiiight?" She tacks on some wiggling eyebrows, and Jane's rolling her eyes and shoving her off, mumbling something about needing to figure out how many pies she needs to make.

You and Jade and Jake spend the rest of the night talking about the tavern and talking to some of the other people in it before falling asleep in the room upstairs. You open your eyes after feeling like five minutes have passed, and with a jolt in your stomach, you remember that today is the day! You're going to find them!

Before that, though, Henry has quite a few barrels of mead for you and Jake and Jade to carry to the barn down the street.

You can barely contain your excitement.

_How could it have taken so long to find him again?_


	9. Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _With our backs to the wall, the darkness will fall,_   
>  _We never quite thought we could lose it all._   
>  _Ready, aim, fire, ready, aim, fire,_   
>  _An empire's fall in just one day;_   
>  _You close your eyes and the glory fades._   
>  _Ready, aim, fire, ready, aim, fire away._

_The corridor glistens as the heir strides down it, sharp black boots clicking against the stone. He wouldn't know from looking, but just a few days ago, the halls were covered in soot and blood from the battle that had taken place._

_But now, now, the kingdom was at peace again. As of later tonight, all of the Dersites and their sympathizers will have been relocated to a new land for them to live in, and his own kingdom will be happy the way it deserves. This is what he's always wanted. Everything is as it should be._

Why does it feel like you're forgetting someone?

_The doors to the throne room open as he approaches, and he nods to the knights, remembering how valiantly each of them had fought for him in the battle. All of the knights and squires and maids and mages had all been given a medal of honor, every single person who had helped in some way. Even the peasants who had volunteered their barns for them to sleep in, their stores for them to have meetings, their crops so they could eat: all of them had been honored._

_"Sire!"_

_He looks up as he crosses the long room, grinning to the party already gathered around the throne. He had a feeling they would all be here. Sure, the beginnings of what will most likely be a week long celebration are down in the main hall, but those who had been closest, those eight people who had been with him from the beginning, were gathered here. Among them, a few of their closer companions, some of the members of the Twelve Mages who had joined them are present as well._

_"How's everyone doing?" He asks joyfully, grinning at each and every person. With some sort of silent signal, they all begin hugging and shaking each other's hands, celebrating in silence that they had won, and together, remembering those they had lost. After all, not everyone can make it when war is around._

_"My lord."_

_The heir turns his head, smiling in a different way as he turns to look at you. His smile is different when he smiles at you, always has been, always will be._ How could you forget how easy he was to find? _Something about the blue in his eyes sparkled only for you, and you'd never want it any other way._

_"Sir Daniel." He replies, coming forward to grasp your hand. "My right hand Knight. Good to see you up and moving a little faster than yesterday."_

_"Not all of us can just jump up from having a sword through our shoulder like you, King James." You grin back, the easy humor between you two sliding back into place. Gods, it's felt like an eternity since you last saw him, as occupied as you all have been the past couple days. It's hard work fixing an entire kingdom, you know._

_Instead of responding, he pulls you into a tight hug, and you relax into the embrace. He's taller, he's stronger than when you met him as a young ten year old, he's more broad around the shoulders from fighting with that damn warhammer his whole life, but_ gods _if it isn't the same embrace you've been relaxing into for as long as you've known him._

_"I'm so happy to see you well." He whispers so only you can hear, and you're reminded of your present company as he finally looks back, blue eyes wide and sincere. How could you forget about eyes as warm and deep as those?_

_"You as well, my king." You whisper back, with your own face hopefully a little less telling. He grins at you, so close, but that's as close as he can get before a shout rings out, bringing everyone's attention to where someone in the hallway is shouting for the king._

_"A spy! A spy found, in the gardens, they're on their way!--"_

_You and the heir look to each other, and with a solemn nod, both of you have your weapons in hand, ready to face whatever was headed your way._

_With him by your side, you knew you could face anything and be okay._

_How could it have taken so long to find him again?_

 

Dave wakes up with his heart pounding wildly in his chest, the phantom image of strange but familiar deep blue eyes burned into his mind.

He's been dreaming about them a lot, lately.

 

\- - -

 

_It can't be much farther now, can it? Surely no one would have locked the doors before you had gotten there!_

But why does it feel like you're forgetting someone?

_The gates are open ahead of you, and you wave your hands wildly to the guards. The two knights, both of them having fought next to you in the initial siege to get into the castle, wave back, one offering you a torch, but you shake your head, breath coming in gasps._

_"We've got to warn the king." You pant, looking wildly around you. "One of them--they were a double agent. A spy. They turned, oh gods it's sick, they're going to kill him--"_

_Without any more to say, the two alert the patrol, and you run with the other two, sending one of them to look in the gardens and another to check the upper hallways. You, of course, know where to find him, just as you've always been able to find any of the others. The eight of you were always able to find one another, no matter the distance._

How could you forget how easy he was to find?

_"In the garden! They're here--" The shout is cut off with a garbled yell, and you only have time to glance over your shoulder before the dark blue cape whips around, a sneer flashing in the light. The cape is covered in blood, old blood, blood that should have stayed on the ground where you saw it laying with your own two eyes. They're onto you now, and you've got to keep moving. So you spin on your heel and make for the room you know he'll be in. He's the heir, of course he'd go there._

_You're fast, but they're just as fast, and you know you won't have much time before they catch up to you. You pass the other sentry, the one you sent to search these hallways, but you don't have time as you barrel past him, only able to scream hoarsely something that might vaguely sound like, "Run!"_

_He only manages a grunt before you hear the clatter of a sword on the floor, and you bite your lips hard. Why why why does everyone always die around you?_

_"James! King James!" You screech ahead of you, hoping they can hear you through the open doors. You had known his knight would be with him, but thank the gods, you can see most of the others gathered around him as well, all looking up in surprise as you sprint down the hallway towards them. Why was this godforsaken hallway so damn long?_

_"A spy! A spy found, in the gardens, they're on their way--"_

_That's all you can get out before you hear it more than you feel it, a knife slicing through the air and embedding itself in your back. With a gasp, your breath cuts out, and you manage to stumble forward a few more feet before falling through the entryway and skidding to a stop at your king's feet._

_"Riley!" He kneels next to you, pulling the knife out quickly before he spins you over, wide blue eyes staring down at you. How could you forget eyes as warm and deep as those? "Riley, my gods, who--"_

_He snaps up then, gaze locked on the doorway where the traitor storms through, practically howling as they begin throwing knives at those assembled. Thankfully, the knight has his sword and someone else has a shield, and they cover the rest as they scramble for weapons or cover._

_"Long live Derse!" The Resurrected screeches, and you see the heir's jaw clamp shut tightly._

_"Babe--James, James." You babble, not letting yourself say the term of endearment even in what might be your final minutes. He hadn't wanted it, hadn't wanted you--but gods, you were there,_ you'll always be there, _you'll always take a knife for him. You can't hold it against him, bless his sweet soul. You'll take anything, as long as it protects him._

_He looks down at you, eyes wet. You muster up a grin, patting his cheek. "Give 'em hell. Long live Skaia."_

_He stares at you a moment more, then nods before placing a kiss on your forehead. "You'll be missed, thief." A sad smile is on his face. "Certainly stole my heart away."_

_"I told you, I'mma rogue." Your voice is slurred, and you think you hear the distant clang of armor on armor behind you. But even as you focus on it, it grows more distant. "Sounds cooler."_

_He smiles down at you once more, and you can see your vision begin to fade. At least his face, even if you got nothing that you wanted to take from him, is the last thing you'll see. You wish you could have given them more of a warning. How could it have taken this long to find him again?_

 

Roxy wakes up in a cold sweat, the cold iron almost burning around her wrists. The phantom pain is still in her back as she gasps for breath and tries to remind herself for the hundredth time that she doesn't know anyone by the name of James.

She really hates the feeling that she's lying to herself.

 

\- - -

 

 _Your feet pound against the ground, pulling out your shield just as Daniel draws his sword. Together, you advance, and all you can think about is_ traitortraitortraitor--

Why does it feel like you're forgetting someone?

_She falls before you have the chance to shout, and all at once you remember how at your insistence, you had moved the group inside instead of hanging around outside with the townspeople. While it may have saved your lives, you forgot Riley, and just as before, she was taking the hit for all of you._

_How could you forget how easy he was to find?_

_Daniel's fighting next to you stride for stride, and you almost laugh at how easy it is to fight next to him. Perfectly matched in technique and wit, and while it was an amazing combination in the heat of a battle, neither of you could stand each other any other time._

_You've got the damned traitor pinned beneath you, sneering up at you still even as your shield is pressing against their throat._

_"Stupid Kankri." They hiss, glaring at you. How could you forget eyes as deep and warm as those? But now, they're cold, a darkness settling in them, and you're looking up with wide eyes to Meenah across from you, confirming what you already know. "You could never kill anyone, useless fucking sap that you are--"_

_"She's been compromised."_

_"We have to do this--"_

_"You can't kill her! You can't!"_

_"Latula, if we don't--"_

_"I don't care!"_

_Her eyes are dead, as far as everyone else is concerned. She's not there anymore, hasn't been there since she died on the battlefield four days ago. With a stiff upper lip, Daniel does it, quickly and smoothly enough that she falls limp without so much more as a gasp. Behind you, Latula's a mess, and you can hear her shrieking her name over and over._

_You take stock of the people around you, those that you have come to know and love, and think about how many less there are of you than when you started. Your eyes scan over the group again a few times, confused. Where is he? Wasn't he standing just behind--_

_And there he is, kneeling next to your king with a look of incomprehensible sadness. How could it have been this hard to find him again? "It shouldn't have happened this way." You hear him mumble, but deep enough that his voice carries even over Latula's shrieking. "It won't happen this way again." And then he's up, off and running, and none of you can do anything but watch as he storms out of the doorway and down the hall, fists clenched. You feel yourself move after him, just as you always have, just as you always will._

_Someone has to make sure everyone gets home in one piece._

 

Karkat gasps himself out of his nap, and with so much force that his neck criks, turns and looks next to him where his brother is still sound asleep in bed, shaggy hair draped across the makeshift pillow as he snores in the moonlight. He's still there, no one's dying, and they're okay. They're going to be okay.

Why does he feel like they can't run fast enough?


	10. Qu'on Se Souvienne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _If I could live a thousand times,_   
>  _If I could make a thousand tries,_   
>  _Maybe then I'd get it right._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jeebus this one took a while to write, my bad.

"John, stop picking at it." Jane swats your hand away from the loose string at the end of your shirt where the hem has started to come undone. "The more you pull on it, the more likely it is to all unravel and I'll have to fix it for you!" She levels you with a stare, then turns away with a fond smile when she can't hold the frown anymore. You sigh, putting your hand back under to support the pie pan instead.

Across from you, next to Jake, Jade gives you a sly, knowing look, but then skips ahead before you can do anything mature such as stick out your tongue at her.

"It's not too much farther!" Jake proclaims, pointing ahead, and Jade giggles next to him.

"We know, Jake, we literally walked the way with you like, three times this morning!" She gives him a teasing look. "Or have you forgotten that we helped you when you got your barrel stuck in literally the only patch of mud on the road?"

Jake stammers and blushes, and Jane cuts Jade off before she can really get going.

"Come on, now, no need for that." She grins again, looking up to where the big building is already filled with people. "Just merriment and fun!"

"And pie!" You helpfully throw out, lifting the pie you're holding. All three of them cheer back, lifting their own pies as well. Jane really outdid herself, if you were honest! No doubt these pies were going to be a huge hit. Maybe they'd even be popular enough that it would help draw a certain someone out from the crowd!

"Oh, she's here!" Jade grins and waves animatedly at a young girl standing outside of the barn, speaking to a merchant currently selling flowers. "Rose! Rose, hey!"

The girl turns, deep purple eyes flashing in the late afternoon light. A small smile crosses her face, and she excuses herself from the merchant as all of you approach. Jane and Jake continue inside, and Jane takes your pies from you two while rolling her eyes.

"Good to see you again, Jade. I was wondering if you would come to this festival as well." Rose's smile is small, but it's there, almost in complete contrast to the beaming Jade next to her. In fact, the two couldn't look more opposite! Where Jade's skin is dark from the summer--darker than yours, even--Rose is pale, almost as light as you've seen anyone. Jade's dark hair is a mess despite Jane's careful styling, but Rose's short blonde bob is pulled neatly behind her ears, and her deep violet eyes are almost a shockingly dark color compared to the rest of her. She's gotta be at least half Prospitian, you think, in order to have eyes such a pure color.

"Yupp, I'm here!" Jade greets, throwing a hug around her. Rose pats her shoulder kindly, then Jade spins--arm still around Rose's shoulder--and points at you. "That's my brother I was telling you about! John, meet Rose!" 

"Hey Rose!" You grin, waving a bit. Rose smiles back at you, and you wonder if she ever doesn't seem put together. _Where did that thought come from?_ You've barely seen her for two minutes! She's holding herself the way you'd expect a queen to, so having Jade standing next to her--who was once part of a royal family--is almost laughable.

It's entirely laughable, who are you kidding. You definitely giggle a bit before Jade talks over you.

"Were you gonna buy some flowers?"

"I was considering it." Rose answers, tucking a strand of hair that got knocked loose from Jade's assault back behind her ear. Then, her cheeks color a bit, almost as if she's a bit embarrassed by what she says next. "In fact, I was actually planning on making one of those flower crowns you were wearing last time."

"Don't spend your money on flowers!" Jade almost shrieks. "I can show you where we can pick the best ones for crown making!" You shoot Jade a warning glance, but she rolls her eyes at you before pulling Rose away around the side of the barn. Rose shoots you another smile before she disappears around the corner as well, and you snort. How Jade made friends with someone so different from her was a mystery.

Inside the barn, the celebration is in full swing even though it's still early. Tables line the walls similar to last time, and people seem a bit quieter. Like the four of you, a lot of people are wearing work clothes, and it almost seems as if everyone's gathered around for a big family dinner after a long day of work. 

Jake spots you almost right away and waves you over, and eagerly hands you a mug of mead. "Join the party, ol' chap!" He claps you on the back, nearly making you spill, before turning back to the men gathered around. "This man here was saying he used to work in the castle!"

You choke on your drink, but hurry and cover it up with a forced laugh. "Oh, wow! Really?" In fear, you glance up to who Jake's gesturing at, and feel your eyes widen. It's the old man from the last festival, the storyteller. He's watching you with an equally amused expression, nodding along as Jake continues.

"I was telling him that you and your sister used to live close to the capital!" He grins at the old men gathered around. "Small world, isn't it?"

"Very." The old man nods, then looks back to Jake, smile relaxing. "But yes, yes, I used to work in the castle. I was the scribe for the royal family up until...oh, twenty years ago, maybe? But then the shakes in my hands grew too strong, so I retired and returned to my old home town." He grins when Henry nudges him in the side. "Heard my fair share of grand stories, in my day."

Oh, phew. He retired before you were even born. So you were safe! That doesn't explain why you thought you recognized him, though...

"Which is why he tells them all now!" Henry adds on, smile as wide as always. "Auden always has the best stories lined up for the festival."

"Which ones are you going to tell this week?" Jake asks eagerly, shooting Henry a smile when he refills his mug.

"A secret, my boy!" Auden, the old man, shakes his walking stick good naturedly at Jake. "I can't reveal the tales before I tell them, then all of the surprise is gone!"

The men around you laugh as if they've heard this before, and as the conversation continues around you, you spare a quick glance at the other clusters of people. Nope, no red-eyed person yet. You do see a couple more flashes of colors that are just too saturated to be normal, and think maybe there might be more than a few people here that either used to live or had family that lived in the capital. Geography was never a big hit with you, so who knows what kind of people live here! Wait, was that even geography?

You spot Jade and Rose coming back inside as it starts getting dark, both sporting extravagant flower crowns. Ivy and baby's breath trickles all through Jade's now braided hair--that must be Rose's doing, Jane could never get it that neat--while violets and small pink flowers sit in a tight circle atop Rose's head. They stick closer to the edge of the crowd, still deep in a conversation that has Jade gesturing all over the place, oddly reminding you of Jake. Well, you had been living together for a few months now, that was long enough to pick up on each other's habits, right?

The music kicks up as people seem to be finishing eating, and you laugh when you see Jade drag Rose out on the dance floor, one of the first few out there. But just as quickly, more couples and groups follow until nearly the whole barn is taken up by people dancing. On her next rotation around in a circle with a bunch of other girls, Jade grabs you, and you find yourself in between an over-exuberant Jade and the composed-but-smiling Rose as the circle skips and kicks around.

"You don't do this often, do you?" You can't help but ask Rose, and when she turns her head to smile at you, you smile back on automatic, as if this was a smile you were on the receiving end of quite often.

But you've never seen her before. So why were you able to guess what she was about to say?

"What gave me away?" She muses in time with the echo in your head, and you laugh brightly as she squeezes your hand, doing her best to keep up when Jade screeches and whips the circle around more quickly.

Again, you find yourself dancing with quite a few people as the night goes on, trading off the chunks of the hours between drinking with Jake and dancing with Jade, Rose, and a few other girls. It feels like it could have only been twenty minutes when the music finally comes to an end, but the sky outside is plenty dark, a cool breeze sifting in through the doors that you may or may not be controlling.

Jane shoots you a look as the breeze glances across the top of her head, and you shrug back as innocently as possible before turning to the small stage.

"Good people of Lowashton!" Henry's voice is booming out, arms spread wide as he shouts at everyone. "Welcome to the first night of the harvest festival!"

Cheers echo around, and just as before, Jade finds you in the crowd and loops her elbow through yours, except this time she has Rose on her other side. You shoot the two of them a smile before turning to face back front, where Auden and Henry have commandeered the stage once more. Jade wiggles a bit between the two of you, settling in to listen. Rose, on her other side, merely smirks.

"As is tradition, on the first night, the story is told of what we are celebrating." Henry continues as the crowd settles down. "And of course, here is the grandest storyteller of them all, Auden!" The crowd erupts into cheers as Henry steps back, and Auden takes a few steps forward, leaning more heavily on his stick than you remember him doing earlier.

"Thank you, thank you. Always more noise than I deserve for such a simple recollection." Auden smiles humbly, looking around more thoughtfully than he had at the last festival. "I see many new faces. Yes, this town has always been a welcome haven for those who are seeking something new. In fact, I bet many of you didn't know that this is where the rebellion with King James started!" There's a small gasp, and some people cheer.

"Yes, yes." Auden nods, smile growing a bit wilder. "His Prospitian mother fled to a city just west of here, and when he was old enough, he came to our taverns and our homes and built his rebellion into the army it was, using this very town as a base. Some say it was fate that brought him here, others say instinct. I say it was both! Because not only had his rebellion begun here, but this was the first Prospitian town ever established in this grand country of Skaia."

Rose's eyes widened a little bit, and with a start, you realized most people must not refer to it as Skaia anymore. Ever since the Dersites took over, it was called Derse, an extension of their kingdom. But perhaps since so many people here still seemed loyal to the old ruling family, the people in this town just called it Skaia no matter who ruled it.

"Look around! Look at all the faces of those surrounding you." Auden prompts the crowd, and with a smirk, you meet Jade's eyes as he continues. "Different colors of skin are no matter here, nor where you come from. In fact, I bet the spread of Prospitian blood in this town is some of the most diverse in the whole country! What matters here is the strength of your character, something the Prospitians built their entire culture on. They were a kind race, as I've stated before, open and honest and hardworking. And when they came over here, they brought those same principals with them, and that is what drew King James the Defender to this town. That is also what may have given King James the compassion he needed to accept Kurloz the Savage into his ranks. However, that is for another night."

Auden stood up a bit straighter, and you continued to glance around the room. "Called by some the Guardian King, he was entranced by the Prospitian culture. His own mother had done her best to teach him, but not everything can be conveyed when you are short on time. So he came here, spoke to the people, learned the stories from them. The Prospitians have always worshiped four gods, as you know, the four cardinal elements incarnate. It is said that they are the ones who bestow their powers onto the populace, those with powers handpicked by the gods themselves. Those who are given the gift of one of the cardinal elements are revered above all others, and some believe that they may have the blood of the gods in their veins."

His voice dropped to a dramatic whisper as John's attention was caught once again. Man, Auden was a _fantastic_ storyteller. "Earth. Fire. Water. Wind. These four are the hardest to master, but they are the most powerful magic in our world." His eyes alight with the now bright torches, he grinned. "There were once four great mages in Prospit, named Cetus, Typheus, Echidna, and Hephaestus, and these four lived for ages in Prospit as leaders. No, they weren't directly rulers, but king after queen after king after queen looked up to them for advice. Now, we all know that those with magic live longer than your average folk, but those with a true mastery over their element are said to be able to live as long as the gods will let them. And it was these four advisers that defeated an entire army of necromancers, who obliterated the Dragonkillers of the Northern Skies, who forced back the Horrorterrors of the Darkest Mountains! And it was them who led the people of Prospit across the great sea and into Skaia!"

Auden adjusted a bit, voice going back to his more formal, informational voice. "It is for these four mages that we celebrate our festival. First, the harvest festival to honor Skaia and all she gives us. And now, this four day long celebration, one day each for the Four Saviors of Prospit." He held up a hand, one finger counting off. "Night one! The first night is in honor of Cetus, who was thought to be the first water mage ever in history. Her daughter was said to have founded the city of New Prospit, just fifty miles north of here. She was a benevolent mage, one always open to helping her neighbors and friends in any way she could. So, the first night of the festival is the night to catch up with friends and offer good tidings and condolences alike. It's a time to catch up and honor the fluidity of conversation and the strength in the tides of your bonds."

Jade giggled beside you, and you turned to look at her, confused. She gestured with her chin, since her hands were still holding on tightly to Rose's and your own arm, and you followed her gaze to the far corner where Jake was now swaying lightly, arm around a very amused looking Jane. It was obvious she was supporting almost his whole weight, but you knew she could handle it. Jane was probably the strongest out of all of you.

"Tomorrow night is the night of fire!" Auden was continuing. "Hephaestus was a fire mage, and a proud mage was he. It was his ideas that were spoken of most passionately and he was not afraid to hold back his opinions. He was the one who led the boats across the sea, his boat the brightest of them all as a beacon for the others. On the second night, we honor him with performances of all kinds. He was a fan of music, of dancing, of the arts, because of the passion each had for their skill. So, for those of you who love to dance the night away," Auden paused here to wink at Jade, who squirmed and grinned right back, "You best pray tonight to Hephaestus himself that your feet do not grow sore."

Auden looked away again, gesturing to the crowd. "The third night is the night to honor Echidna, Mage of Earth! Many say without her favor, the lands of Skaia would not be half as bountiful!"

"Sounds like Echidna would be a fan of yours." You hiss to Jade, who grins at you as she kicks your ankle.

"She was a healer, a soothsayer, able to help ease the pain of any who came her way." Auden's smile grew distant. "Her descendants in the days that have passed have always had a knack for potions, and many of them became the owners of the first apothecaries. Now, you'd be hard-pressed to find a store that didn't have a small symbol of hers up on a wall." He pointed to the tables of food along the walls. "On the third night, we shall have a feast! Any and all dishes prepared are welcome. We will celebrate and give thanks not only to Skaia, for allowing us such a wonderful harvest this year, but also to Echidna, who graced the grounds she walked on. Any worship of any god is permitted, and your neighbors shall share in your thanks giving."

"And finally." Auden turned back, looking at you with a smirk. "The fourth night is the night of Typheus." He looked away, and again, you were struck again with the feeling that Auden seemed to know a lot more than he let on. "More of you may have heard of him, for it is from his line that King James descended. His blood ran in the veins of our ruling family, and many say it is because of his eternal wisdom that was passed down through the generations that we were blessed with such great rulers. King James seemed the embodiment of Typheus himself, levelheaded and compassionate and willing to do whatever it took for his people. And so on the fourth night, we cast down the dark colors of Derse." Auden looked on to the crowd, as if daring anyone to speak. A couple people in the crowd shifted warily, a few more checking over their shoulders as if they expected a Dersite soldier to come through the doors at any minute.

"On the fourth night, we celebrate Skaia." Auden's voice had a steely note to it as it rang out over the now dead-silent crowd. "We celebrate our good kingdom, who has stood for thousands of years. We celebrate King James and his rebellion, who fought to give us back the life we deserved and fought for us! We honor our heir! And we celebrate and prepare for the return of our heir and his circle of seven, who will return once more! The Eight Heroes of Skaia will rise again, and on our fourth night we will show that we are ready to stand by them to cast down the darkness that has taken over this realm!"

A moment of silence, of hesitation. Then, with a piercing whistle from Jade, a cheer began, and it built until the floor itself seemed to reverberate with how loud it was. In astonishment, you looked around you, watching as the citizens who had gathered here cheered madly for the kingdom of Skaia. It made your heart leap into your throat, and with almost a tear in your eye, you turned back front only to see Auden smiling firmly in your direction.

"Long live Skaia!" He shouted, raising a fist, and the crowd returned it tenfold.

_"Long live Skaia! Long live Skaia!"_

After quite a few minutes of celebration, Auden motioned for everyone to calm down again. 

"On the fourth night, wear your brightest colors and your nicest attire! For on the fourth night, we will be honoring the Heirs of Wind, the descendants of King James, with a gala fit for a royal family! Long live Skaia!"

The crowd echoed back the cheer again, and with another wave from Auden, the crowd was dismissed. Everyone was still mad with the cheer, grinning and shouting to each other across the noise as they all located who they had came with. You finally pulled your arm free from Jade, turning to Rose to ask where she was staying, but she had beaten you to the farewells.

"It's best I be going." She smiled at each of you, deep purple eyes bright. 

"Do you need us to walk you back?" You responded on automatic, eyebrows high on your head. After all, a lady should never walk alone at night! You did remember some lessons from the castle still.

"Aw, John, look at you being all chivalrous for our new friend!" Jade teased, leaning up to ruffle your hair. You grinned and leaned away, mind turning over that word. _Friend._ Somehow, it didn't feel like enough.

"I appreciate the offer, John." Rose responded smoothly, smile a little wider as it broke its polite limit and turned into something more familiar. "I really do. But actually, my brother is around here somewhere, and I should be fine with him as my escort."

"You have a brother?!" Jade shouted, eyes wide. "Why haven't we met him?"

"He's not one for large crowds," She began, then smirked. "Although something tells me he'll be here for the celebration of Hephaestus tomorrow."

It was like being punched in the gut, or dropping onto a branch of a tree ten feet below you. The air whooshed out from your lungs as Rose smirked in your direction, no doubt sending the breeze above your heads into a frenzy. 

_Deep purple eyes gazing into your own, holding on tightly to your shoulder. "Don't worry, we won, we won."_

_"Are you sure?" You rasped, already struggling to sit up._

_"James, don't you dare move." The familiar face pushed you back down gently, careful to avoid your stab wound. "Kankri and the others are already putting everything back together and getting a head count. You need to rest. You'll need all the strength you have for what's coming tomorrow." She smirked down at you, and you've seen that same smirk for years now, and you'd trust it with your life._

_"If you're sure, Rachel…"_

_"I am, now rest. A king deserves his sleep after a battle like that."_

_You smile to yourself, drifting off. King, king, king..._

"He better be!" Jade grinned, breaking you out of your weird daydream, and then reached forward to hug Rose. "You better be, too! We can make more flower crowns for everyone to wear this time!"

"I'm sure John is more than excited to receive one." Rose is laughing, then she reaches forward to hug you as well. You might grip her a little too tightly, still a little shaken, but she merely pats your shoulder as she lets go, giving you both one more smile. "Until tomorrow, friends."

"See ya, Rose!" Jade shouts after her, waving until you can no longer see her in the crowd. With that, she turns back to you, still giggling. "We better see what Jane did with Jake's drunk butt." You grin back, and let yourself be pulled along by Jade as you shove your way through the now thin crowd.

Jake is still woozy, holding on tightly to Jane, who has now resigned herself to being his personal crutch. When asked how she stood the smell, she just grinned.

"I just keep picturing what he'll feel like tomorrow. He'll owe me one."

The four of you begin making your way back to Henry's, listening to the chatter of other small groups leaving as well. You really didn't want the night to end, but it was pretty late. In fact, it almost felt like the sun would be coming up in just a few hours! With a wistful feeling in your chest, you turned to glance behind you one more time to the barn. Silhouetted against the light of the door was Rose, looking up and speaking to someone who must have been her brother. When her head glances in your direction, you wave quickly, unsure if she can see you.

To your surprise, she raises a hand to wave back, much more smoothly than you. You can see the man shift beside her, almost closer to her as if in a protective gesture, and you swear you can see a flash of red.

"Oh, look! Is that a firedancer practicing?!" Jade breathes beside you, looking behind you as well. You glance just a few feet to the right of Rose and her brother, and there is in fact a dancer practicing.

That must be what the flash of red was, you told yourself, laughing a little as you turned to face forward. How silly! Perhaps the red eyed person just had some stuff to take care of and that's why they hadn't shown up. Funny, with how much fun you had been having with Rose, you almost forgot about them!

They probably had a farm of their own. Maybe they'd only show up for one or two nights later in the festival. Maybe they'd even show up to Henry's tavern! Regardless of how much fun you had, it was impossible to shake the familiarity of those red eyes. Even the weirdness from seeing Rose wasn't enough to dislodge the feeling in your chest. Now that you thought about it, with the cool night air clearing your head, the feelings were pretty similar. Maybe you'd seen her before, too! Probably just from the cities you and Jade had ran through or something. You hadn't asked Rose where she was from, after all. Actually, why hadn't you asked her that?

_Because you already know,_ the voice in your head that reminds you of the breeze says. You shake off the answer. How could you possibly know? You had just met her today!

"John?"

You turn in the dark room, the only light coming from the small window that you were sitting by. Jade was sliding out of the bed she shared with Jane back at the tavern, creeping quietly across the floor to come and sit by you, green eyes lighting up in the moonlight.

"You can't sleep either?" You ask her, and she shrugs, smiling a little as she looks up at the sky. The stars were bright tonight, nearly no cloud covering at all in the skies. The almost full moon shed its light on the trees and cobbled streets all around, casting everything in a silver glow. It was beautiful like this. Sure, you loved warm sunny days with the wind at your back, but somehow, everything at night just felt more peaceful.

"John?" Jade asks again, and you turn to look at her, surprised to see her face troubled. It wasn't often she worried her lip as she was, chewing on the inside of it in a nervous habit you just knew she had picked up from Jane. 

"What is it?" You prompt when she stays quiet. After another moment, she takes a deep breath, eyes still staring out the window.

"You know that feeling you said you got about those red eyes?"

It's your turn to frown now. "Yeah?"

Another weighted pause. "I...I think I got that feeling from Rose, tonight. That feeling that you know them from somewhere, but you can't figure out where. But you _know_ you're friends. Like she'd never do anything to hurt you."

You turn back out to the window, some of the unease sliding away, lifting a small weight from your shoulders. So Jade had noticed, too! That definitely meant you weren't crazy, right? Right.

"Yeah." You tell her, leaning your head onto hers as you both watch the stars. With a deep breath, you smile. _Of course._ "I got that feeling, too."


	11. Secrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I found the cure to growing older,_   
>  _And you're the only place that feels like home._   
>  _Just so you know, you'll never know,_   
>  _And some secrets weren't meant to be told,_   
>  _But I found the cure to growing older._

Working in Henry's tavern was really exciting! Granted, it was hard work, and sometimes the people yelled a lot if you got distracted, but besides that, it was great!

"Another round for the guys back there!" Jade shouted at Henry, who was in charge of the barrels. He had a long bar that a lot of locals and regulars sat at to chat with him, but besides that, there were people seated at tables all around the large room who were there to drink as well. Seemed like everyone was in celebration mode all day long during the festival! It was around lunchtime, and you and Jade had another few hours before you'd start rolling the barrels of beer and wine down to the barn building for the celebration that night, so you two volunteered to help while Jane was working on her pies.

Jake was still asleep, and would most likely not be moving for another hour at least.

"John, will you help me carry them?" Jade asked you, still smiling. "They're all so nice! And they know a lot about plants that grow in the kingdom." With a mischievous wink, she turned around, holding six mugs carefully in her arms. You grabbed the remaining three and followed after her to a table in the far back corner, filled with a group of ten people. They were all cloaked and had bags at their feet, clearly a troop of some sort just moving through.

"Here you guys go!" Jade grinned, setting them all down with a thump on one side. You grinned and began passing them out, while she turned back to the man on her left. "So what were you saying about those green things?"

"The jade plants?" The man laughed, accepting his mug with a nod from you. "Very rare, only grow in the dryest of places, such as the cities down south. Last time I saw them was, oh, eight years ago? Probably before you were born!" He laughed, a couple of the men laughing with him while Jade rolled her eyes.

"I'm thirteen, Lee! You knew that!"

"I know, I know." The man, Lee, grinned good-naturedly. "You're not far off from one of our own, here!"

"Me! I'm fifteen!" A small girl, who John hadn't even noticed down at the end, waved a hand.The only one without a mug in front of her, her dark hair sprung up in curls all around, framing her young-looking face. She was sitting next to a large man who was easily the most muscular in the group. Her olive green eyes sparkled despite the lack of interior lighting in the tavern. "I turned fifteen last spring!"

"I'm fifteen, too!" You smiled, waving a bit at her. She seemed nice! Why was someone so young traveling around? Was she an apprentice or something? "So what do you guys do?"

"Trading, mostly." A different man answered. "We hunt for pelts a lot and trade them at whatever town is nearest." Someone else interrupted the end of his sentence, arguing about a price for something or another that he got not too long ago. You looked from the new side conversation back down the table at the young girl, who was whispering fiercely to the guy next to her. His long, dark hair hung down, blocking any sort of facial feature. He kept his eyes down, not looking at anyone, and it seemed like he was barely responding to even her.

"Jade! John! A little help?" Henry called from back up at the bar, and you gave him a quick wave while Jade looked to the girl down at the end of the table.

"Are you guys going to come to the festival tonight?"

"Can't, unfortunately." Lee answered for her. "We got to keep moving. This time of year, the deer are starting to move south, and we have to keep up."

Jade pouted, and the girl shouted down to her. "Don't worry! We'll be back up this way by this time next year! I'll even try to bring you some jade plants if we find any!" That seemed to ease her mind, and Jade waved a few more times to the men before you two turned back to go help Henry. 

Working at the tavern made time pass faster, and it was definitely worth it to see Jake stumble down the stairs just in time to start corralling the barrels and move them down to the building. It was set up differently today, with more seats around the edge of the room and less tables, with a lot more area in the center. _Probably for the dancers!_ You reminded yourself, grinning. Auden had said there'd be lots of dancing tonight and showing off! Jade probably couldn't wait. Who were you kidding, you couldn't either!

It was only as you were getting dressed that night that you remembered you were supposed to be keeping an eye out for the person with red eyes. Thinking back, you couldn't remember seeing anyone in the tavern, but that didn't mean anything. Surely they'd be back tonight, wouldn't they?

"Two pies each, please!" Jane scolded, leveling Jake with a glare. He frowned at her, but grabbed the second pie.

"Why did you even make so many?" He asked as the four of you headed out for the evening, the sun still shining, although it had started to set. "Surely there's not that many people eating them!"

"There was hardly a crumb left last night!" Jane responded with her eyebrows raised. "And I'll have to make even more tomorrow, with the feast and all! We may have to enlist some help to carry them all down!" Jake only groaned in response, you and Jade laughing at the face he was making.

Again, almost as soon as you all had set the pies down, Jade was waving frantically to someone in the crowd.

"Rose! Rose, hey!"

There was already a smile on your face as you turned around, watching as Rose slid between two people to come over and greet you guys. Jade pointed to Jane and Jake, who had not yet wandered off. "This is Jake and Jane! Those are the friends I told you we came with."

"Pleasure to meet you." Rose smiled, giving a small curtsey. Jade snorted hard, turning it into a cough as you patted her on the back. You haven't seen anyone greet another person like that since the palace! Jane, looking taken aback, merely took Rose's hand in shock.

"It's nice to meet you as well! Jade says she's been having a lot of fun hanging out with you lately."

"It's been the best of times." Rose responded, voice smooth, then turned to smile at Jake, a single eyebrow raised.

Jake, in response, choked out, "Hey," and then ran away. Jade full on laughed while Jane shook her head. "I'm so sorry about him, he's not the best at manners. We're working on him."

"And I'm sure you'll do a fabulous job." Rose told her, then looked to you. "John? How are you this evening?"

"Doing great! Excited about the dancers!" You told her, looking around the room. Jade's eyes widened, looking around as well.

"Oh my gosh, I almost forgot! How many do you think there'll be?"

"I expect there will be quite a few performances." Rose mused, and Jane excused herself from the conversation with a strange look in the direction Jake had headed. 

The music struck up as the musicians settled themselves on the stage, and Jade turned to Rose with a wide smile. "Ready to dance?!"

Rose grinned back, dropping some of her composure. "Always."

Jade grabbed her hand, already pulling her to the floor as she shouted, "Hope you prayed to Hephaestus like Auden said to!" Rose shot a mock look for help over her shoulder, but you just shrugged back, laughing.

With those two out there first, it wasn't long before other couples and small groups joined them, and soon some of the performers wound their way through the crowd, dancing with different people. You made your way around the edge of the room, watching with wide eyes. You remembered a few dance troupes coming to the castle on celebration days when you were very young, but this was different. These people weren't tense and professional, performing in front of the royal family, no. They were relaxed, enjoying themselves, showing off what they loved to do best.

Jake eventually found you, a mug in his hands that you were pretty sure wasn't his first. He handed you the other one he was holding, not quite looking at you as he started drinking again.

"Uh, Jake?" You asked, frowning a bit. "Shouldn't you slow down? I mean, you remember what you felt like this morning, right?"

Jake looks at you, eyes wide like he's been caught. "Uh."

You wait a minute, but there's nothing else coming out of his open mouth. "Jake? You okay?"

"Fine! Fine, totally fine!" He responds quickly, and both of you wince at how forced it sounds. After a sigh, he looks away, back to the crowd. "Gosh darn it all. I don't know how to do this."

You frown deeper. "How to...stop drinking?"

"What? No." Jake gives you a look, then gestures out at the crowd. "I'm 17 years old, for god's sakes! You would think by now I'd know how to talk to the ladies, never mind other people! They just make me so bloody nervous! How do you get along with them so well?" He turns back to you, almost a desperate look in his eye, catching you by surprise.

"Um, well, you talk to Jade and Jane, right?" You start, and Jake begins rolling his eyes, so you hurry on before he can interrupt. "It's just like that! You just...talk to them. Treat them like a friend, say nice things. It's not hard. You're a nice guy, I'm sure you'll do fine." Honestly, where did this come from? Jake was always one of the loudest guys in the group, always boasting about his adventures and things he'd like to do. Where was that Jake now?

Jake sighed heavily, taking another swig from the mug. "I suppose you're right. Bajeesus. Maybe I'm overthinking it. Well, that's what the mead's for!" Jake grins awkwardly, holding up the cup in a 'cheers' motion. 

Before you can so much as counter with a _no, that's definitely not what it's for_ , someone's shouting your name across the room.

"John!" Jade's waving quickly, trying to get your attention. And you can see why--it looks like she's got a few of the dancers to join in with her usual circle of girls! Maybe they're learning some new dance of some sort. 

"Your people await." Jake gestures, then makes a face. "Christ on a pork rind, why did I just sound like a court announcer? I definitely need to loosen up a bit before I scare everyone away with these hijinks!" He turns away, still grumbling, and you sigh and set your mug down before heading out to meet up with Jade.

"What's up?" You slide in next to Rose, and immediately one of the dancers pairs you off with her, turning the two of you to face each other. "Whoa, what?"

"We were short on partners." Jade grins at you, waggling her eyebrows a bit. She's got another one of the girls in front of her--and yes, nearly everyone there is wearing a flower crown. Where does she keep getting these things?

Stupid question.

"I hope you don't mind." Rose states politely, obviously feeling a bit put-out by the surprised look that must be on your face.

"Oh! No, it's fine!" You backtrack quickly, putting a hand out for her. "I'm always happy to help!"

"Like this!" One of the dancers call behind you, and you look to try and learn the moves so you don't break any of Rose's toes. Honestly, what a terrible second impression that'd be! Not that she'd judge you for it, Rose was never too judgemental. Wait, what? Nevermind that! The dancers are mostly in shades of red of some sort, and begin moving slowly to the beat of the music that's drifting through the air. Rose catches on quicker than you, but she's patient, and slowly, you two begin to get the hang of this.

Jade is now dancing with one of the dancers, her bare feet--again, no surprise--moving quickly enough that she's definitely learning some of the more complicated moves. This encourages you, and you think maybe dancing isn't so bad after all.

After you twirl Rose around, earning a surprised grin in your direction, you laugh. "I think I've got this! We should definitely try that spin move again!"

Rose lifts an eyebrow. "Are you sure we can handle such complicated moves so early on?"

You grin back. "We can do anything! Watch, if we just--"

"Mind if I cut in?"

There's a sharp poke to your shoulder, and Rose looks behind you, one side of her mouth quirking up. "Brother dearest, nice to see you've joined the party. Finally, might I add."

You turn around, not quite sure what you're expecting to see, but as soon as your eyes land on him, all of the air leaves the room.

One time, some old guy in town had fallen over, hand clutching his chest. Jane had explained later on that it was called a heart attack, where your heart just kind of gives out and you die. The man had looked like he was in a lot of pain, and it bothered you for quite a few days.

This is kind of what you imagine the feeling to be like.

Except for you, your heart starts pounding painfully in your chest, and there's a giant breeze that roils through the room before you can get a handle on it and smooth it back out. A couple of the torches go out, but most people don't seem to connect that with you, thankfully. Jade notices, leaving her partner quickly to come back over and look at you, curious.

 _It's them._ The person with the red eyes.

"John?" Jade asks, then looks from you to Rose's brother, and her mouth drops open.

He's a couple inches taller than you, slender where you've gained muscle from working all summer. He's probably around your age, his blonde hair is a couple shades darker than Rose's, almost more of a golden tint instead of a silver one, with a few tiny freckles across his nose. He's got on a nice white shirt--obviously he hasn't worn this one out working, like you can tell with some of the other townsfolk--and worn in boots, scuffed nearly all over. Jane would have a heart attack, but you think it looks nice. Like they're well loved, his favorite pair or something.

But what freaks you out the most are his eyes. They're even redder than you remember, the deepest crimson you've ever seen, except for maybe a ruby on your father's crown. With the light of the torches flickering in the building, they're shining, and you're hit with a rush of emotions even as you get the wind back under your control.

_"Daniel, no!"_

_Despite your shout, he lunges in front of you, throwing up his sword quick enough that the spear misses you--and instead buries itself in his opposite arm. He drops to a knee, face still twisted in a grimace, and shoves his broken sword expertly at the opposing man, who falls to the ground the instant it slices through his chainmail._

_"Dammit, Strider!" You grunt, taking the few steps forward to pull him back up. Sir Daniel's already sweating, trying and failing to keep his face in an even expression as he looks at you, blood rushing out of his wound. How could you forget his stupid savior complex at a time like this?_

He looks back at you, eyes widening the smallest margin, but it's enough that you can see he's feeling something different as well. Something like the smell of a small campfire fills your nose, and you swallow hard.

_"Hey, that's one Dersite down, right?" He jokes, voice faltering on the last word. It rips your heart apart to hear him like that, like anything other than the calm, cool, and collected man who stood by your side through everything._

_You had reclaimed your castle, but the battle still raged around in the countryside in the following days. You and the others had traveled around, splitting up to divide and conquer and help to push back the Dersites until their forces were no more. You, Sir Daniel, and Latula had come out to the eastern half of the kingdom where the fighting was the worst, closest to the ocean. The others had all promised to come and help as soon as they were done, and you heard Kurloz and Kankri were already on their way with their own groups and reinforcements._

_Of course, Daniel refused to listen to you, and had now just jumped in front of a spear to save you._

_"Don't joke right now." You told him, and he turned his gaze up to yours, crimson eyes boring into your own. With his gaze comes the complete trust that you two have always had for each other, that you always had and always will have each other's backs._

_You can't lose him now._

_"As you wish, my lord."_

"John? Are you alright?" Rose asked quietly, and you snapped out of it, taking a fluttery breath. Jeez, what a doozy! Maybe you needed some fresh air. The boy across from you takes half a step back, hand twitching by his side like he's longing to grab something that isn't there.

"Fine! Sorry." You smiled shakily, ignoring Jade's wide eyes as you offered your hand to the guy in front of you. Your hand shakes a bit, but you hope no one notices. "You're Rose's brother? It's nice to meet you! I'm John."

He stares at you a moment, face rearranging itself minutely until it's the stoic face he had on before you made eye contact. He shifts his weight, giving you another once over before taking your hand in his.

It's like fire is racing through your veins.

_You hold him tighter, shouting out for Rachel or anyone who can get you a healer. It's like the ashes from last night's fire have clogged your throat._

"Dave." He tells you stiffly, voice a little higher than you expected for some reason. It's smooth, even pitched, but scratchy like he hasn't used it in a while. You two continue to stare at each other, and then Rose clears her throat at the same time Jade waves, and you two pull your hands back quickly, as if you had been burned.

"I'm Jade!" She steps forward, offering her hand to Dave as well, who frowns a bit as he realizes how firm her grip is. "I'm John's sister."

"Pleasure." He says simply, still eyeing her hand as she pulls it away. 

_How could it have taken so long to find him again?_

With one more final shake and a twist of wind above your heads, you grin at him, gesturing to the side of the room. You had finally found your red eyed person, so now you can get to know them! Time to figure out how in Skaia's name you know you'd seen them before. "We're kind of in the way of the dancers, we should probably move."

"Yeah, we're totally clogging up the floor." Jade giggles, grabbing Rose's arm and dragging her off towards one of the few food tables set up. You and Dave follow, and you can't help but try and look at him more out of the corner of your eye. He was just so familiar. How could you have seen someone like him before and forgotten about it? You know there's no way you could ever forget about eyes like that. It was obvious that he and his sister had a lot of Prospitian blood to have eye colors like _that!_ You and Jade could pass for less, since yours were both green and blue and not too crazy, but they had to have at least as much as you two did!

"Where have you been hiding?" Jade starts the conversation once you all pull off to the side, and you're grateful that she has things to say. You're still watching him pretty carefully, so you're not totally sure you could form full sentences right now!

"I wasn't hiding." Dave answers quickly, hands in the pockets of his pants. Which, what? Not a lot of pants were made with pockets. Usually you'd have to find a specialist in a busy town, and even then they were expensive! Jane only figured it out after a couple failed pairs of pants that now just had extra thick padding on the hips. So maybe he and Rose did come from close to the capital!

"David doesn't enjoy large gatherings." Rose answered for him, and the corner of Dave's mouth twitched down. "But, seeing as we're celebrating Hephaestus tonight, he couldn't resist showing up."

"Why Hephaestus? What's so special about him?" Jade grins at him, and Rose shoots her a sly smirk as Dave's eyes glance from Rose to Jade.

"He--Our parents were practitioners. Of the Prospitian religion. Hephaestus was the coolest one, obviously." Dave cuts himself off then, glancing at you and then quickly away, somewhere off in the distance. Was he...embarrassed? Nervous? The wind was no help at all, and continually tried to rush down and ruffle his hair, which was tooootally not appropriate for a first meeting. Especially when you were undercover. 

"Why was he the coolest?" Jade presses, either completely unaware or trying to embarrass him further.

"Fire. Duh."

"Ehhhh, fire's okaaaay, I guess." Jade crinkles her nose, and that gets Dave's attention back on her. "All you can really do is burn stuff, though! How useful is that really?"

"What?" Dave frowns. "Plenty useful, what are you talking about?"

Before Jade can tease him any further, someone's pounding on a drum, and you all look to the floor where everyone is rapidly clearing out. In the center of the newly formed circle stands one of the dance groups, and with a count from the musicians, they begin a dance.

Jade squeals and steps in front of you and Dave so she can see better, pulling along the shorter Rose as well. You and Dave share a look, and he quickly glances away, moving to follow so you two can stand behind them. You're just behind Jade, able to see clearly over her shoulder, but your mind keeps buzzing away to where Dave is literally a few inches away from you, right behind Rose. He's not quite what you were expecting the red-eyed person to be like, but at the same time, he's exactly what you thought he'd be. 

Dave's standing stiffly next to you, standing out a bit as the rest of the crowd oohs and aahs and sways a bit with the music as they watch the performers. The next act up is a group of dancers twirling some sort of stick with both ends lit, and Jade's eyes widen even more. In between one act and the next, Dave leans down to say something to Rose, and whatever she responds with has him clenching his jaw. He glances at you before straightening back up, and when you offer a friendly smile, he looks away and shifts over a few inches. Okay, so maybe not instant friendship like it was with Rose, but that's okay! You've got two more nights to talk to him, and you haven't found a person that doesn't like you yet!

The performances pass by a little more quickly than you'd like, and Jade is selected a few times to be a volunteer in some of the dances. After the third time, you notice it's the same girl that was dancing with her before, and you frown a bit. Was something going on between them? The dancer's eyes were a deeper red than Dave's, closer to a burgundy, but still beautiful as she grinned at Jade and spun her around. She was a few years older, probably closer to Jane's age, and you shifted a bit. Man, how did Jade do it so easily? You bet she could get Dave to relax sooner than you could!

The dance ends, and the crowd erupts into cheers. Jade giggles and curtsies back to the girl she'd been dancing with, then skips back over to your little group. Rose raises an eyebrow in her direction, and Jade only shrugs before turning to clap. As the cheers die down, Auden walks out, and all of the dancers slowly come out again, forming a sort of circle around him. The crowd quiets in anticipation, and when the drum begins, slow and steady, Auden begins talking.

"Tonight is another tale of the Heroes of Skaia." He grins, pausing when a few whistles ring out--one from Jake--then raises his hands. "As we all know, those eight are the reason we are here today, but they could not have done it alone. Together, they traveled out from this town and gathered a following, and among those who began following them, there were 12 of the most loyal and fiercest companions our heroes could have asked for. These 12 became known as the 12 Mages, and there are quite a few ballads in their name."

The dancers moved in a slow circle, many of them staying in place and swaying as one by one, twelve of them began moving in a quicker circle, each performing a sort of spin with another as Auden's voice rang out. 

"The first three of the mages were found in a nearby town, in a rebellion of their own. They had formed a small group of their people who knew magic, and these three were the only ones of the twelve mages who had true magic abilities. They joined into King James' rebellion with open hearts and ready minds, and we thank them for their loyalty."

Two more dancers spun around in tight circles as Auden's eyes swept the crowd.

"The next two were hiding in the woods, exiled for their beliefs. James welcomed them, offering them a place in a new world they could create together, and they taught him every survival technique they knew to help his army survive in the woods and wild lands of this kingdom. They were the the spirit of vitality to the rebellion, and we thank them for their creativity."

Auden's hand gestured to the far side of the barn as more dancers spun, these ones in green silks. "A simple woman and her friends, traveling abroad and hoping to find somewhere they could call home. The heroes found them in our eastern most lands, and with those three, created bases throughout the country side for the battle they knew was coming. Those three found that instead of searching for a house, you could create a home with the people you're with, and we thank them for their hospitality."

The twelve dancers began a synchronized dance around him, and the remaining dancers joined in. You could feel Jade stilling in front of you, watching with mesmerized eyes.

"The final four were allies from all around. One, born of Dersite royalty himself, saw the cruelty from his people, and ran away, intending to tell James every secret he knew. Two of them were stolen from underneath the nose of the Black Queen, prisoners from the first siege, and for those three, we thank their discipline and their heart for leaving what they knew to help fight for what is right. And the last…" Auden's voice grew quiet, and all the dancers save for one turned to look at Auden.

"The last was the greatest warrior that would ever see battle." Auden smirked. "Like one before him, he hated what the Dersites were doing to the people of this kingdom. He was an officer in their army, and he deserted them. When he came to James, asking to join the rebellion, many thought they should not trust him. How could they? He was a high ranking Dersite, from their own army! How could they ever trust a man like that? But James could see the good in him." Auden pointed to his chest. "James could see how the man wanted to change the world for the better, and he could see the same fire in his soul that was born in every single one of the heroes. King James the Defender accepted Kurloz the Savage into his ranks, and Sir Kurloz proved his loyalty time and time again, cutting down more foes than any other man or woman in the rebellion's forces. He became one of James' most trusted friends, and we thank him for his fierce spirit."

The dancers all stood again, moving around as Auden spun while he spoke. 

"The Twelve Mages aren't nearly as remembered as the Eight Heroes, but they were just as important! Without their friendship, their loyalty, their encouragement, our King could have never succeeded as easily as he did. And we thank them! We give thanks for their loyalty, for their creativity, their hospitality, their discipline and their fierce spirits. Their passion was unmatched, and their fighting spirit lives on today in the heart of Skaia and its people!"

A few cheers broke out, and each dancer moved out from the crowd to grab someone. Unsurprisingly, the same girl grabbed Jade, and together they moved to the circle, where Auden was smiling at everyone.

"Their spirit lives on, and we honor the twelve mages tonight, with the dance of Hephaestus' Forge!" Auden quickly stepped back into the crowd of people, watching with fond eyes.

Instantly, the music swelled, and each dancer began spinning their chosen partner in a quick series of moves that you recognized. They were the quicker footsteps that the girl had been teaching Jade earlier! It also looked like some sort of waltz that you remembered your parents doing back at a ball. You shouted, cheering Jade on as she grinned madly, skirt flying wild around her as they spun and spun and spun. Jade had obviously picked it up faster than any of the other volunteers, and she and the dancer spun around the floor while the others made more room for them to show off. Thankfully, no one seemed to notice that a few tufts of grass were poking up through the wooden floorboards by the end of the dance. 

After what only felt like a couple minutes, but was probably a lot longer, the music slowed down, then finally stopped, and everyone began clapping as Auden waved his walking stick around. Dave actually clapped a couple times next to you, and you smiled to yourself. So he could loosen up, it would just take a while. All according to plan, smooth and easy, take it slow…

"Let's hear it for our performers and our volunteers!" Auden called, and everyone clapped as each person moved back to stand in the crowd. Jade giggled, shooting you a grin as she looped her arm back with Rose's. Auden continued, "We have time for one more dance! How about the always popular Ballad of the Rogue?"

You knew that one! It was a slow song about a girl who risked her life to save the guy she loved, but he loved someone else, and she died without him ever knowing! It was kind of a slower one, usually meant for couples to dance to--

Oh. 

Jade jumped a bit, grabbing Rose and pulling her out on the floor as the musicians rearranged themselves. Jade winked at you before looking back to Rose, settling her hand on the smaller girl's waist. Panicking, you turned to look around you, and your eyes landed on Dave's.

He had a similar look of panic on his face, and you gave him a funny look. How could he be worried about finding a partner? No doubt with how he looked, there'd be a few girls looking to dance with him! But then you remembered that Rose said he didn't like crowds, and wondered if maybe he didn't want to dance with a stranger? But wasn't that what dances were for?

Dave cleared his throat, waving a hand vaguely in front of him. "Um."

You raised an eyebrow, hearing a violin tune itself, and listening as the other instruments matched pitch. "Um what?"

Dave actually blushes, waving his hand a little more forcefully. "Uh, well, seeing as our sisters jumped the gun and apparently called dibs on each other already, would you--if you don't--"

"Would you like to dance?"

The two of you turned to see who had interrupted Dave. It was a girl, slight of frame and obviously around Jake's age, with curly blonde hair and simple brown eyes. She was staring expectantly at Dave, a smile on her face. "I mean, only if you want to. And my friend could dance with your friend here!"

Beside her was a brown haired girl smiling shyly at you. You smiled to her, then looked at Dave. See? He totally had nothing to worry about! Dave was obviously surprised, floundering a bit for words. "Uh, well, you, uh--"

"We'd be happy to!" You smiled, offering your hand out to the girl. "Let's get going, the music's about to start!" Grinning like she was surprised you said yes, the girl walked with you out on the dance floor, settling somewhere towards the back. Over your shoulder, you could see Dave hesitantly take the girl's hand in his, and they stopped a few feet away from you, just in time for the music to start. A local girl that you remembered seeing at the other celebrations began singing, her voice just sweet enough to make the music feel like magic.

You knew this dance by heart, and could probably do it in your sleep if you wanted! You and Jade learned it at a young age since it was so popular at balls and celebrations, and you two had practiced often enough with each other over the years. So, you were pretty great at it. Dave, on the other hand, looked like he wanted to run out of here.

His movements were stiff, unpracticed, and even though the girl was looking expectantly up at him, he seemed like he was looking everywhere but her. The two of you made eye contact, and you gave him a confused look, trying to ask through your mind or something _What's going on?_

Dave's eyes widened even more, and he frowned and looked down at his feet. Okay, so maybe he was just worried that he didn't know the dance? But he seemed to be doing okay! Honestly, with all the questions you were asking yourself, you might just have to chalk up Dave as a big old mystery. Regardless, you loved this song, and with a small smile back in Dave's direction--who looked away again immediately--you lost yourself in the song.

For some reason, this one had always struck a chord with you. Gosh, how sad was it that she would have given everything--and did give her life, in the end!--only for the guy to never love her back? She was referred to as the rogue because although she stole hearts all over the land, she only had eyes for one, and refused to lead on any others. Some thought she might have been one of the Twelve Mages or something, but it was probably just a made up story. Fake or not, it was a beautiful song, and really reasserted your belief in true love at a young age.

The girl's voice faded out, and the instruments faded a few moments later, and everyone stopped dancing and clapped for the performers. Henry called out above the noise, "Get ready for the feast tomorrow!", and then everyone began moving to collect their things.

You turned to the girl in front of you, giving a small bow like you had been taught to at the end of dances. "A pleasure dancing with you, milady!" Her eyes widened, then she giggled and curtsied back, saying, "The pleasure is all mine, good sir!" With a shared grin, you both turned to walk over to her friend and Dave, who was seemingly in the middle of an awkward goodbye. You smirked a bit. He and Jake must be more alike than you thought!

"We'll see you two tomorrow, probably, right?" You interrupted, patting his shoulder. He looked to you with an expression of equal parts relief and worry, and the girls both smiled and waved goodbye before walking off. You turned to Dave as they walked away, grinning a bit and punching his shoulder lightly. "She was cute! Wasn't that fun?"

Dave winced a bit, then schooled his expression back into something that looked bored. "Yeah, I guess, whatever." You rolled your eyes, nudging him towards the exit.

"Come on, our sisters are probably outside already."

Just as you thought, Jade and Rose were standing outside with Jane and a very drunk Jake. _Again?_ You thought, wincing a bit in embarrassment for him.

"Well, we're staying with Jane and her cousin, but John and I could probably walk you back!" Jade was saying to Rose as you walked up, and she turned as if about to hand Jane the pie tins she was holding. But then Jake let loose a loud snort, wobbling a bit on his feet as he threw his hands in the air.

"Oh, yes, right. We're _cousins!"_ He gave an obnoxious wink to Jane, whose eyebrows shot up her head. "We told them cousins, yes? Great! Boy shitting howdy, no _way_ would we want them knowing the real story!" He laughed loudly after that, and your eyes widened to match Jane's while Jade's look became more defensive.

"What was that?" She asked, voice low, and Dave had the decency to look like he probably shouldn't be here. Internally, you agreed. If Jake was about to confess to one lie, who knew what else he'd say?

"Oh, right, we didn't tell you." Jake giggled, voice slurring a bit. "Whoops! Maybe John is right, I shouldn't have had that much to drink!" He leans over to slap your shoulder, but as you pull away, he stumbles, and Jane outright glares at him.

"Jake."

"I'm _sorry_ if I don't want to lie anymore!" Jake whines, righting himself while Rose shifts warily. "Honesty is the best policy, my good _cousin_ , and I can no longer abide by this hogwash!"

"Jake, shut up!" Jane hisses, but you put a hand out, your own defensive side coming out. If Jake and Jane had been lying to you this long, you weren't sure you could trust them. And if Jade was in danger, you'd do anything to protect her.

"No, hold on. What does he mean?" You look to Jane, brow furrowed. "Are you two not actually related?"

Again, Jake interrupts. "If only it were that simple! No, actually, when we were weeee kids, our parents had us in an arranged marriage. And we were friends and it was cool! But marriage?" Jake makes a face like he wants to puke, and Jane takes a step back from the group. "Disgusting! How could I marry someone like _that?_ So I ran away and our parents called it off and my mother tried to blame it all on her! Quite the scandal, and that's why my whole family moved away and no one in her town would talk to her anymore." Jake shrugs as if it's no big deal, but the rest of you had all looked to Jane, who now looked on the verge of tears as Jake continued. "Not surprised she tried to bury the hatchet, pretty embarrassing if you ask me!"

"Jake, shut up!" Jade screeched at him, fist clenched like she wanted to hit him. "Can't you see how rude you're being?"

"It's the truth!" He replied, but you stepped forward, frowning.

"Maybe it is, but that's not the way to go about telling it." You looked to Jane, holding out a hand. "Jane, I'm so sorry--" You cut yourself off as Jane turns and sprints away, holding her skirts up out of the way. She's lost in the darkness pretty soon, but you were positive you saw tears in her eyes before she turned.

"Oh, Jane." Jade whines, shoulders slumping, and Jake wobbles some more on his feet.

"Uh."

You turn to look at Dave, who looks even more awkward now. He rubs the back of his neck, then points to Rose with his thumb. "We...should probably be going. And we'll let you two go deal with...whatever that is. Um." He looks at you like he's unsure if he wants to ask, then grimaces as he says hesitantly, "See you tomorrow...right?"

Rose raised her eyebrows a bit, but you nod firmly, shooting him a smile. "Of course! We'll see you then." Dave nods, and with a shared look at Rose, they head down the road as well, and after a couple minutes of silence, you groan and look around. It seemed like everyone had finally cleared out despite your little group's weird freak out, and the streets were silent. Thankful, you looked skywards and let the wind rush around you, the cool air clearing your head a little.

"Did I say something?" Jake slurs, rubbing at his eyes, and Jade lets out a mix of a growl and a yell before whipping around and punching him in the stomach, and he lets out a huff of air and falls back on his butt, holding his stomach.

"You're so rude!" Jade shouts at him, hands out wide on either side of her, and for the second time, you're thankful no one else is on the streets. "If we weren't such good friends, I'd leave you to find your own way home! I know you probably won't remember any of the _stupid_ shit you said tomorrow morning, but you owe her a giant apology! How could you say that about your friend?" Jade huffs, leaning back a bit and putting her hands on her hips. You pat her shoulder comfortingly, turning her away a bit before whispering to her.

"Do you think we can still trust them?" 

Jade looks at you like she was thinking the same thing, then groans. "Honestly, Jake seems too dumb to hide anything major from us. And I can't blame Jane, I'd probably want to keep that a secret, too! _Jeez,_ can you imagine what his parents must have been like to do that to her?" Both of you look back at Jake, who's struggling to get back to his feet. 

"I can't imagine it was his idea." You say finally after watching him fall a couple more times. You wave your fingers, and the breeze gives him a little boost. "As rude as he just was, he is a nice guy. I doubt he would have wanted to cause her any harm. As for what he said about Jane…" You trail off, remembering his disgusted face. "Maybe he's just been bitter for so long that that's what it feels like with no filter?"

Jade looks at you for a moment, then sighs as well. "Yeah. Maybe. Either way, he better apologize to her tomorrow, or I'm coming after him!" She points a finger at you, and you smile back, and then together, you pick up your drunk friend and help him home, the light of a nearly full moon shining above you.


	12. The Former House of Strider

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Your blood, it flows in from the western sea,_   
>  _Your eyes, they shine in through this shaded tree._   
>  _Oh, I believe in you._   
>  _These faces, they have changed._   
>  _I don't know anything, but you know me,_   
>  _Oh, you know me._

Your name is Dave, formerly of the house of Strider, and you feel like you've just seen a ghost.

The first couple times you had those dreams about some king, you had kept them to yourself. They were just dreams, why should they matter? But as they kept happening and your sense of dread grew, you got the feeling they might be more than just that.

Once, your family had a mystic staying in one of the guest houses, and she had told you that often, dreams that felt real were sent as a warning from the gods. She was an old Prospitian woman, far older than anyone you had ever seen, and her vibrant orange eyes stared at you from underneath bushy white brows like she could see through you. She told you to pay attention to them, and listen to what your instincts told you, because if the gods had chosen you to receive these dreams, then something big was coming.

You weren't totally sure you believed that, but whatever.

Once you and Rose had left and began journeying around on your own, you told her about them, if only to pass the time. You focused more on the people and what was going on than the guy with blue eyes, because honestly, even you were weirded out by thinking about it. That was a little too much for your 14 year old mind to comprehend just yet. But you told her about the other knights and the battles and the mages, and every time you got a new dream, it was almost like telling a new chapter to a grand story.

It got weirder when Rose began having the dreams as well.

Hers were hardly as action heavy, but they were much more detailed, and she could remember small things like the time of day and what people wore, and soon, you found that you two were dreaming about the same people.

Super fuckin' weird.

Thinking it was attributed to your Prospitian blood, you and Rose stopped in the next major town you came across and asked to speak to a couple scholars. Finding scholars nowadays who knew about old Prospitian tales was hard, and finding any who were willing to discuss them was even harder. But still, through crazy broad abilities or whatever, Rose was able to convince one of them to talk to her.

Unfortunately, they didn't have much on dreams, just kind of an old wive's tale that you had heard since you were young. Rich people were fond of their legends and superstitions.

"They say that three spirits of the original heroes and mages of the Great War live on even now, through dreams." The scholar told them, eyes glancing through a book as he spoke. "First, the Diviner, one of the eight heroes, who had the ability to see a world beyond our own filled with information on what was to come. Second, one of the mages, remembered as one of the only two fire mages. It was said that time did not affect her, and as the others began dying of old age, she simply disappeared into the mist. Third, the spirit of Kurloz the Savage. He wasn't seen often after the Great War, and some say his anger and hatred were so great for those of that had committed those crimes that his rage lives on, untested by time, as a warning to all those that Derse never rests for long."

"And can any of these be counted on for fact?" Rose asked, face still calm even though you two had literally just been told that you might be having dreams about the _actual Great War._ That was almost a thousand years ago, how could you know anything about that?

The old scholar simply smiled at her. "My dear, all rumors have a kernel of truth to them, do they not?"

So you had moved on with this information in mind. Weirded out, you stopped telling her about your dreams as often and she grew quiet about them too, probably out of respect for the fact that you seemed reluctant to talk about them.

14 turned to 15 the next winter, and you were still dreaming about the man with blue eyes.

You still didn't have much context for him, because you could never really remember too much once you woke up, but you still got the feeling that you were close to him. Almost like a brother, or a best friend. You trusted that man with your life, and for all the gold in Skaia you could not figure out why. But there were other things to worry about.

Despite how low key you kept them, your secrets still had a way of circling about as rumors, and if you stayed with a group of travelers for too long of a time, the story would come around again of the 'red eyed demon and his temptress' that attacked a royal family. That meant it was time for you and Rose to leave before anyone made the connection. Since it seemed like the traders and people who moved around a lot knew more about this than anyone, you and Rose decided to head out as far as you could and settle down in a town who was far enough away that they had probably never heard the story.

And so you found Lowashton. It was a small town that had a local fare market nearly every day, and with the gold you two had saved, you got yourselves a small room to share in an inn and began looking for jobs. It was only a couple days after that they had their Harvest Celebration, and Rose insisted you go.

"You've been growing rather mopey, don't you think?" She told you with an eyebrow raised. Backed into a corner where no doubt any rebuttal you could think of would be shot down, the two of you pulled out some nicer clothes and attended.

Rose was happy to remain on the sides of the crowd, mingling with some people her age, but you were too nervous. After nearly two years of constant moving around, it still felt weird to stand still. Gods, how you wished Rose would have let you bring your sword into this place. At least then you could feel like you could defend yourself if something happened.

And then, at the end, during a story, you realized the story teller obviously had no clue how close he was to the torches that surrounded the stage. On the next turn, you had the fire move out of the way of his cloak, and you heard something across the way, like the clunk of a warhammer against a wooden shield.

 _Must have been his walking stick,_ you thought, but you looked just in case, and immediately froze.

Blue eyes, as deep as an ocean but as light as the sky, were staring across the circle at you. You were too close to a torch to really see into the darkness of the building well, but you knew that you had seen those eyes somewhere before. They seemed to look right through you, as if they were able to reach in and pick out just the right parts of your soul to make your heart start pounding in your chest like you had just entered into a duel.

Terrified, you refused to go out in public for the next few days. That was waaay too close. No doubt they had recognized you, and that was why they were staring. Those from House Strider had never been anything less than flashy, tons of people from all around knew about your family. Rose said you were being foolish, but a small voice inside whispered that you were being _safe._

Despite your best efforts, Rose coaxed you back out again, and you soon found a job as an apprentice for the local blacksmith. He was impressed by your knowledge of swords and other weapons, but told you he mainly made tools for farming, since that was all people really needed around here. Figuring you could use the knowledge, you took the apprenticeship, and when you told Rose that night, she informed you that the town had no scribe, and she had volunteered and would be working with the lady at the apothecary to write down her remedies for the next few weeks. Of course, being from a noble family meant you learned how to read and write, but a lot of people out in the farmlands didn't know much other than what related to selling their wares. Over the next couple weeks, Rose turned out to be quite useful to everyone.

The two of you were able to start making a living, and while the people were warm and friendly, it was more amazing to you that they had almost no knowledge of what was going on by the capital. It was as if the city was so far away that it had no bearing on what happened out here. And that was the most comforting fact of all. If no one knew about the capital, then no one knew about you and Rose, and that meant you were safe.

Rose went to the first of the four nights of the celebration before All Hallow's Eve, and came back happier than you'd seen her in almost two years. Sure, she kept her voice even and level, and her eyes blinked as slow as they always did, but you could see how hard she was trying to keep herself from smiling too wide. She had had so much fun that she hadn't even taken the flower crown off yet when you know for a fact she would have taken it off instantly not even a month ago. She insisted that you should really come, and you insisted that you really shouldn't, and she fell asleep still arguing with a smile on her face.

In the morning, when you woke up early, the flower crown was resting in its own spot on her bedside table. It meant more than anything to see your sister happy, to see her healing again, and you knew you couldn't say no. So that night, despite your better judgement, you followed her to the celebration. 

You stayed on the edges for a while, watching her kind of protectively, and you noticed that she kept hanging out with the same two kids. One was a bouncy girl, who seemed to constantly be smiling and was at the center of nearly every group dance on the floor. The other was a boy, probably your age, who had cowlicks of his own and was smiling _way too fondly at your sister._

Feeling a little on the wrong foot as you walked over, the only thing you remember thinking as he turned around was _I shouldn't have come I shouldn't have come I shouldn't have come--_

His blue eyes seemed to rip a hole in your chest, pulling back every feeling you had ever gotten from those damn nightmares and displaying them on a silver platter right in front of your eyes. He looked up at you--you were only a couple inches taller, but still--slack jawed and wide eyed and it had done something to you. The smell of the air before it rains had washed over you, throwing you for a loop and whipping you back before you had even realized that your normally composed face was long gone.

Thankfully, he was acting just as strange as you felt, but you couldn't stop watching him the whole night. You don't even remember what any of the performers did. Were they dancing? Who knows? You leaned down to Rose at one point, asking how she knew John, and when she told you, "I knew you'd ask that," it made you frown all over again. John, ever friendly, had smiled at you, and when you looked away from him, you could feel your cheeks heating up.

Really, the only part of the evening that you remember clearly was the last song, some ballad or other, and when you realized it was a couple's dance, the same burning voice that was always in your head screamed _ask him! Ask him!_

You didn't know how to word. Speaking? What was that? Something you definitely didn't know how to do. You had your hand in front of him like you had always seen your older brother do when escorting a lady to dance, and hoped that would get the message across, but _of fucking course,_ you were interrupted by two girls. Inside, you cringed, but when you saw how excited John looked, you agreed to dance with her. It was obvious the girl was into you, and was trying kind of hard in your opinion, but all you could think about was John _fuck how do I know him why are his eyes like the nightmare eyes why does he smell like the wilderness how do I know him._

He was a mystery. You could not for the life of you figure out where you had seen John--or even Jade, for that matter--before, and you thought about it all the way back to your room. John and Jade just felt like regular names that you were used to saying, their smiles felt like something that had always been by your side, and it felt like a part of you that had been missing had finally come back home. There was something wild about them, but comforting, and warm.

You hadn't felt like that since your brother--well, no use thinking about that now, is it?

"Excited for tomorrow?" Rose asked as the two of you got into bed that night, sliding under her blanket with a smirk on her face. "You certainly seemed eager to assure yourself that John and Jade would be there."

You groaned, staring up at the ceiling. "Yeah. Sure. Excited is definitely a word you could use for that."

Rose snickered, and with a snap of your fingers, the candle on your table went out, and you were left in the darkness with your thoughts.

_How could you forget about eyes like those?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dave strider, am i right ladies????
> 
> anyways, the next couple updates might be kind of slow coming, because i'm moving out of my apartment, so bear with me!! thanks so much for all the comments and kudos guys, it really means a lot!
> 
> remember, anyone is more than welcome to request stuff and chat about the au over at my tumblr, i love talking to you guys (:
> 
> thanks again!!


	13. Confessions Under Moonlight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I said it before, I won't say it again:_   
>  _Love is a game to you, it's not pretend._   
>  _Maybe if I fall asleep, I won't breathe right._
> 
>  
> 
> _Can nobody hear me?_  
>  _I got a lot that's on my mind._  
>  _I cannot breathe._  
>  _Can you hear it, too?_

"John, shh!"

You rolled your eyes, heaving Jake through the door. "It's kind of hard to keep quiet when I'm dragging this load along!" You gave another pull, and Jake's broad shoulders finally fit through the door. 

Somewhere along the way home, Jake had fallen asleep, and Jade had decided that you got to carry him all by himself. Great sister, yeah, whatever. He was taller than you were still, and somehow seemed to weigh a thousand pounds!

"Wait, no one's awake." Jade whispered, eyes lighting up even though no torches were lit down in the bottom room of the tavern.

You gave her a look, shutting the door with your foot. "Yeah? So?"

"Soooo!" Jade grinned, wiggling her fingers. "Why don't you use your powers to carry him?"

You paused for a moment, then used one hand to smack your forehead. Of course! Why hadn't you thought about that! No one was out on the streets anymore, everyone was in bed. There wouldn't be anyone awake to see you float Jake up the stairs.

Jade giggled as you face palmed, then turned and ran up the stairs. "I'll get the door!"

With a smirk, you leaned away from Jake, summoning up a breeze that could lift him off the ground. It rolled through an open window in the kitchen, knocking something over in the process, and swirled around you for a moment before flying underneath Jake's armpits and lifting him into the air. Proud of yourself, you continued on your way. The first couple steps, Jake's feet hit the stairs, but after that you got the hang of it, and by the time you got to the door, you were cradling him easily! You set him down on the bed gently, used the breeze to cover him up with a blanket and kick his shoes off, and then sent the wind rolling back out the window Jade had opened.

"Jane isn't here."

You startled, looking to Jade with wide eyes. "What?" With a glance to the bed the girls shared, you confirmed it, and then looked back to Jade. "Where could she be?"

"She's not outside, I can't feel her out there." Jade responded, brow furrowed. "If she was, I could feel her on the grass or something, but none of the trees can feel her, either."

Your eyes widened a bit, marveling at how powerful your sister was, then shook yourself. This was important, no time to get excited about new powers! If Jade could use the plants to sense people, why couldn't you use the wind? Closing your eyes, you reached out to the breeze you had just sent tumbling away, and to your surprise, you could actually feel Jake and Jade breathing in the room with you. The sound of their breath was as familiar as your own, rushing down into their chest before swirling back out, and spurred on by that, you reached out further for something else familiar.

One breeze was tugging, obviously trying to lead you across town, but you shook that one off. Jane wouldn't have gone that far! The winds down by the kitchen window that you had sensed before coiled in excitement, and led your mind back through it to where you could feel her sitting in a corner. Your eyes snapped open, looking back to Jade. "She's in the kitchen!"

"Should we talk to her?" Jade asked, playing with the hem of her shirt in worry.

You paused, frowning. "Maybe not both of us…"

"You go then." Jade insisted, coming across the room to you. "You're a lot better at saying nice things, I'd probably just make it worse." She smirked, and you gave her a soft smile.

"You're not that bad!"

"Oh my gosh, just gooo!" Jade pushed, and you smirked at her before turning and walking back out the door. Reminded by the wind that no one else was awake, you floated your way back down to the kitchen, coming to land just inside the doorway.

You feel her breath before you can see her, and you pull back your awareness just a bit. That might take some getting used to. Being able to feel someone's breath seemed just a little creepy still, but no doubt it'd come in handy someday. Jane's sitting in the corner by the window, surrounded by a couple sacks of potatoes that you remembered selling to Henry not that long ago. She doesn't look like she's crying anymore, but you can see even in the darkness that her eyes are still puffy from before. She's got her legs folded up by her chest, hands holding onto each other, and her icy blue eyes are lit up from the light coming through the window.

"You know there's always a breeze that comes in the room before you do?"

You cock your head, walking slowly over to her. "What do you mean?"

She won't look at you yet, but she continues talking, so you take that as an invitation to sit down next to her. "Right before you come in a room, there's always a little burst of wind, almost like it's announcing you. That's how I always knew when you expect you back home, and at the cottage."

You smile, looking down at your own feet. "Huh, I never knew. Maybe I should stop it, we don't want people to notice--"

"No one notices but me, John." Jane sighed, but there was a twinge of a smile on her face. "It's a real soft one, not like your usual winds of mischief. And I think the breeze only hits me or Jade, maybe Jake. So, no, you don't have to stop that." She twists her face in a sad smile then, looking down at the floor. "You shouldn't have to hide your powers. I know I always thought secrets were a way to keep us safe, but no doubt you think I'm terrible now."

"What?" You can't help the surprise in your voice. "Jane, I could never think that about you! Why would you think that?"

She looks at you, frowning. "Because I lied to you! You and Jade trusted me to hide you in this cottage and I was lying to you about something as simple as that! How could I not seem like a terrible person after that?" She looked like she had been tearing herself up over this, and that made your chest hurt. 

"Jane, we would never think you're terrible." You insist, scooting a bit closer to her when she looks away. "You've kept us safe for nearly eight years now. Even though, yeah, we were kind of bummed you wouldn't tell us something like that, we get it. I mean…" You grimace, unsure how to word it. "It does sound like it was something that was probably pretty hurtful, and not too great. So we get it. I mean, we kept a lot from you, too, you know."

Jane looks up at you in surprise, and you smile a bit. "How about I tell you something about me and Jade that we've never told you, and if you feel like it, you can tell me what happened between you and Jake? Because as much as I feel like you don't want to, I also kind of get the feeling that he didn't tell us the whole story?"

Jane nods, then settles in further with the sacks of flour and the potatoes, and you nod back. Right. Now, what to tell her without giving too much away?

"We told you we grew up near the capital." You start, shifting uneasily. No, you couldn't tell her the whole truth yet. As much as you wanted to, if anything happened, she could be really hurt by knowing too much. Just like her father always thought. Secrets keep you safe.

"We actually grew up _in_ the capital, pretty close to the gates. Our father and uncle worked in the castle and were high ranking noblemen." You look out the window as well, finding the cool night breeze to be comforting. It tousled Jane's hair as it rolled in before moving on to circle about the room. "They had powers, too. My dad could do wind like me, and my uncle--I dunno, I think he was wind as well? But he made it rain a lot, just to make my dad angry." You smirked, remembering. "They fought a lot, but they were best friends. Even though they pranked each other all the time, I know they would have done anything for one another, and I think Jade and I looked up to our uncle a lot. Our mom died when Jade was really little, so we didn't really have another parent."

"He sounds like a fun guy." Jane smiled softly, and to your relief, she looked a lot calmer.

"You'd really like him." You smiled back at her, pulling your own knees up to your chest and leaning on them. "The pranks you two could pull...but anyways." You sighed, remembering to edit a few details. "He was the one that woke me up the night the Dersites attacked. Since we lived so close to the castle, everything was burning, and he woke me up and told me to go find my sister. I asked him where my dad was, and if he was coming with me, but all he would say is that they'd be fine." You looked to your feet. "The last thing he told me was to protect Jade. And if I took care of her, everything would be fine. After that, he ran to the castle to help, and we never saw him again."

Jane was silent for a minute, then she put a hand on your shoulder. "John...I'm so sorry."

You shrugged. "It was a while ago, so I've come around to feeling better about it now, you know? And he died a hero. He went to go help protect the kingdom. I'm sure he wouldn't have wanted to go out any other way."

Jane nodded, and you sat in silence for a few minutes. It felt weird opening up like that, talking about something that you and Jade had agreed was in the Do Not Mention category. But it felt right, like you knew Jane was the right one to talk about this with. It felt good getting it off your chest, too.

"Jake lived just down the road from me." Jane began softly, breaking the silence. You turned to look at her, but she was looking down and away, hands tight to her chest. 

"We were best friends, like he said. We always played out in the fields together, and we were with each other when we both figured out we had these abilities." She smiled softly, eyes distant, like she was lost in the memory. "He always said that we were destined for great things. And I believed him! The two of us, with our magic, and best friends to boot, it seemed perfect, you know? And I always got that feeling that that would be how it ended up. Us, going off on a grand adventure, and staying together forever."

She grimaced. "I could tell he didn't feel the same way, but I was getting feelings for him. I mean, as strong as you can really feel something when you're eleven, but I did. And when our parents sat us down and explained what an arranged marriage was, I was so happy. I would finally have him forever, just like we had always talked about." Jane's voice broke off, and you turned slightly in case you felt the need to hug her. With a shaky breath, she continued.

"Within two days, he stopped meeting me at our usual spot. I was so confused, but I let it slide. Maybe he had work to do on his farm. But then my father told me that Jake had run away to his grandparent's because he didn't want to marry me." Jane closed her eyes. "I didn't understand. We were best friends, so why would husband and wife be any different? But he didn't want me, not at all, and he ran away instead. So his mother--she was a cruel woman, honestly, I'm glad he went to go live with his grandma. She was much sweeter, probably a better influence on him. But, his mother told the whole town that I had scared him away, and that I was a terrible child. I don't remember much, my father never told me what all she told the people in town. But after that, they moved away, and my dad and I just stayed on our farm except to go sell things. I was really, really sad about it for a long time. And then, four months later…" Jane paused, turning to finally look at you with something resembling a smile.

"You two showed up." She chuckled, wiping away her tears. "When I found you in our barn loft, I thought it was a message from the gods, sending me two new friends. Honestly, if I hadn't bothered my dad about it so much, I don't know if he would have kept you. We were barely getting by as it was. But as soon as you two showed up, the plants were growing better, the weather was nicer, the soil was cleaner around our house, and everything just felt...lighter. Like a weight had been lifted." 

She looked out the window, wiping away a couple more tears before smiling at you again. "Honestly, I don't know what would have happened to me. But you and Jade came home, and everything felt right again. Instead of worrying about Jake all the time, I had two little siblings to look after, and I had a purpose. Some sort of meaning. It felt...good. It still does, having you two around." She shrugged. "I've never been able to really describe the feeling, but you two are the best family I could have ever asked for, and the gods were smiling that day they sent you my way."

You had never really known Jane to be religious, she had always kept kind of quiet about that stuff. But lately, you had to agree. There were so many people falling into your life, seemingly by happenstance, that just felt right. There had to be something else out there helping you all find each other.

_How could you forget how easy they were to find?_

"Come here." You decide finally, reaching for Jane and pulling her into a hug. She grumbled a bit, but smiled, leaning against you. There was an easy moment of quiet, only broken by the sound of the wind outside, and then you finally spoke.

"I'm really sorry about what Jake said. That just wasn't cool." Jane shifted against you, and you held her tighter. "But if it makes you feel better, Jade punched him in the stomach and made him promise to apologize."

Jane pulled away quickly, eyes wide. "She punched him?!"

You blinked. "Uh, yeah. Did you...not want her to?"

Jane's face was frozen, and then she burst out laughing, leaning back against a sack of flour for support. You smiled, still a little unsure if she'd start crying again.

"Oh, goodness!" She chuckled a bit more, looking at you. "I can't believe I _missed that!"_

"I'm sure Jade would be more than happy to do it again." You offered, making Jane laugh harder and swat at your shoulder. 

"No, no, one hit is fine, I'm sure. Gods know I wanted to do the same thing a few times over the years." She laughed a bit more, then sighed, glancing at the moon. It was definitely a bit lower in the sky, meaning you two had been up for a quite a while. She was obviously thinking the same thing. "We should get back to the room. I've got to get up early tomorrow to start baking all those pies for the feast."

"Sounds good!" You agreed, stretching as you stood. "Man, all that dancing really wore me out. Auden wasn't kidding when he said there'd be a lot!"

Jane snorts as you two begin up the stairs. "I bet Jade will already be asleep by the time we get in there."

Sure enough, Jade is sacked out on the bed, Jake snoring in the other one. With a shared smile, you both get ready and then climb into bed, and you use the wind to put the candle out that Jade left burning. 

Despite the evening's surprises, you feel okay. Jake will apologize, Jane'll get some closure, and you all will be okay. As long as you have each other, everything will work out fine.

\- - - - -

_"Just get her out of here!"_

_"Dirk, I--we can't just--"_

"GO!" _You bellowed, throwing the angriest glare you could muster at your brother. Now was not the time for him to try and pull his hero bullshit. As the oldest son, you had a duty to protect your home, but he still had time to get himself and your sister out of here._

 _His eyes wide--_ too young, we're all too young for this to be happening _\--he nodded, lips pressed into a thin line. Wheeling around, he made a beeline for where Rose was huddled against a chair, hands over her head. As soon as you were sure they had cleared the room, you spun back to the group of Dersites now approaching you._

_"Little Strider, last of his family." One of them crooned, her black eyes dead in the firelight. "Come to sacrifice himself to save the rest!" She cackled, the rest of them laughing with her. "Too bad you'll all die anyways!"_

_You set your jaw, fingers itching to grab your sword. Not yet, not yet. For this next part, all you needed was your hands._

__What if you can't? _A small voice whispered inside your head, worried. You've never done something like this before, and you know it. A shock here, a quick bolt there, those were fine. But you'd never attempted the level of power you were now going for._

_Well, no time like the present._

_"Nothing to say?" She jeered, and you shrugged, relaxing your posture. You had to be relaxed, had to be sure you could control it, at least until they got out of the manor. The little blips of light in your head that always told you were they were assured you they were close, and you took a deep breath._

_Now or never._

_"Come on, at least let us have a little fun!" The woman shouted, a snarl in her voice._

_"Oh, it'll be fun alright." You assured her, already feeling the crackling beginning at your elbows and shooting down your forearms. "Loads."_

_With a grunt, you shoved your hands in front of you, palms open and facing the Dersites. There was a large roll of thunder, like something building in the sky, and then lightning shot out of your hands straight to the woman._

_The smell of burning flesh quickly filled the room, but you kept going, kept pouring more and more charge into the arc of light in front of you. It widened, yard by yard, until there was no room to hide from the ball of lightning in the room. You could feel it roiling throughout the house, could feel it traveling through every metal fixture so that no one else who was in here would probably survive. Thankfully, Dave and Rose were outside now, probably galloping away on a couple of the Dersite's horses they had stolen._

_"Dirk!"_

_They had gotten away. They were safe. You could feel your own hair splitting on the ends. Your powers had never been strong enough to hurt yourself, but you could feel something hot and burning along your arms._

__"Dirk!"

_But they were safe. Who cares what happened to you? They had gotten away.That was all that mattered. And with a final sigh from your lips, you closed your eyes and let everything you had been holding back your whole life pour out of you and into the air around you._

"Dirk! Wake up!"

With a sharp gasp, you jolted in your chains, eyes flying blind around the room. Where had they gone? Were they okay? Had they made it far enough away?

"Dirk, babe, breathe, you're fine, you're fine--"

You took a few deep breaths to calm yourself, eyes finally adjusting to the dim light. Since then, they had always been a little sensitive, but you were getting used to it. The scars along your arms still prickled as the feeling from the dream faded away, but that was normal, too.

You knew they were fine. You knew they had gotten away. And you did what you always swore you would: you saved them.

"Was it another nightmare? Did it happen again?"

You took a shaky breath, trying and failing to stop the bitter laugh from rolling out of your mouth.

"Do they ever stop?"


	14. The Feast of Echidna

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _Wait, no one said what's lost cannot be found,_   
>  _You are here to make it safe and sound._   
>  _Oh, we can make it out alive._   
>  _Fate hath its way when all that's learned is sin._   
>  _Nothing really matters in the end,_   
>  _As long as you are with me, friend._

"John. John, wake up."

You rolled away from the sharp pokes in your side, groaning. "Leave m'alone."

"No! Wake up!" You could now recognize the voice as Jade's, a hissing whisper. "He's apologizing!"

You rolled to look at her, blinking wearily. "What?"

Jade huffed and rolled her eyes, hair still messy from sleep. "Jake! He's outside the door right now apologizing to Jane! I wanna listen!"

You blinked again. "He got up before we did?"

Jade frowned, growing less patient by the second. "As amazing as that is, that's not the point! Get your butt up, we need your powers!"

"Right, right." You mumbled, sitting up in bed. She grabbed your hand quickly, closing her eyes and getting ready to listen.

This ability was one of the first ones you had learned how to use, other than just the wind itself. Growing up in the castle, it was pretty useful. Using the wind, you could hear conversations from other rooms, and sometimes down entire hallways! It definitely made eavesdropping easier, since you were far enough away to deny it.

"Hurry!" Jade hissed, and you squeezed her hand to let her know you were starting. You closed your eyes, reaching out for a small, soft breeze, and one answered almost immediately.

There was a kind of weird rushing at first, but you found the two of them easy enough since they were pretty close outside the door. You almost lost yourself in their breaths, but you recovered before Jade would notice. With a twist, the breeze brought the conversation drifting inwards, and it sounded like you had just missed the beginning of it.

_"...And that's all I was trying to say. It was nothing against you, Jane, I swear. We both know what a stand up gal you are. But the thought of marrying, especially when I was so young, to someone, and with me being how I am...I just wasn't ready! And I swear, I had no part in anything my mother said. I never would have done that to my best friend, you know?"_

Jane was quiet, which obviously spurred Jake to keep on rambling.

_"And you were! Still are, probably! The best of friends, Jane. And I am so so sorry for that hogswallop I said last night."_

_"Do you remember saying it?"_

_"Ah...not really? But...bits and pieces, yes."_

_"Do you remember the part where you called me disgusting?"_

_"Oh, hell's bells...Did I really? Jane, I swear I didn't mean it like that! I meant the thought of marriage was disgusting, not you! I'm so sorry. Can you ever forgive me?"_

Another long bout of silence, and you could feel Jade squirming next to you.

 _"I suppose. Forgiven, but not forgotten. I just wish you had_ told _me, Jake!"_

_"I know, I know. I really should have said something before gallivanting off like that. And I'm sorry I didn't explain myself sooner, but you know there's not much privacy in that little cottage of ours."_

_"And you really shouldn't be drinking so much. Who knows what you've said to the people around here?"_

_"Criminy, I_ know, _Jane. I know, believe me. But it makes talking to people so much easier! They're all so intimidating and I don't have a single idea on how to speak to them!"_

_"I'm sure John and Jade would be more than willing to include you in conversations! You have to trust your friends more, Jake."_

_"I will. And thank you, Jane. You're a real gentlewoman, you know that?"_

_"Yes, I'm quite aware."_

There was a shuffling of feet, and quickly, you pulled back and cut it off just as they began walking back towards the room. Jade rolled her eyes, flopping back onto her hands on the bed. 

"Weak apology, if you ask me."

You smirked at her. "I'm sure there'll be plenty more opportunities for him to apologize to her."

The door opened, and Jane's face brightened as she spotted you two. Jake still looked bashful, at least, so you knew he had really meant the apology. 

"Good, you're awake! Who wants to help me bake?"

The baking took literally all day. ALL DAY. All day. You were in charge of the filling, and Jane had you make all types of berries into the goopy mess so she could bake them. By noon, you already had three pies done and ready, and by two in the afternoon, there were eight, and you were running out of room on the counter for them to cool.

"We could take them down to the barn!" Jake suggested, and you almost melted with relief. It was so hot in this kitchen, you'd do practically anything to get out of here.

"That's a great idea!" Jane called over her shoulder, and you gave Jake a low five under the counter. "Just make sure they're on the table for the desserts, Henry's wife will know where to put them!"

Henry's wife had gone down earlier to oversee the setting up of the tables for the feast. According to her, the men setting it up had to be supervised because they had "no sense of order at all". With a shared grin between you and Jake and an apologetic look to Jade, still elbow-deep in pie crust, you grabbed two pies each and headed out the door. 

"Would you mind kickin' up a bit of a breeze, mate?" Jake asked quietly, and you grinned at him, letting a subtle wind roll over your shoulders. It felt pleasant and cool and was _very_ welcome after the heat of the kitchen. Jake groaned and rolled his neck, "Can't believe she wouldn't let you do that in there. 'Disturb the setting of the crust', honestly. I'll be a glad man when we get out of this town and can use our powers whenever we want!"

You smirked, rounding the corner to the barn, but soon forgot to respond as you saw the huge banners across the doorway to the barn. There were painted pictures of harvest fruits and vegetables all over, and through the doors of the barn were quite a few people moving things around.

"Set it over there! No, not there, you idiot, there's already a table there!" Henry's wife shouted, hands on her hips. "Honestly, people need room to move around in here!" With a huff of breath, she turned sideways, saying quietly to the girl next to her, "Please mark down how much space is between the tables, I wouldn't put it past them to muck this up after I'm gone." Her eyes drifted past the girl, then she grinned as she settled on you.

"Jake! John!" She called, tone much more friendly than the tone she had used with the men. "Welcome! What's that you got there?"

"Pies!" You called back, face lighting up as you realized it was Rose that was holding the quill and paper next to her. "Jane's been baking up a storm. Hey, Rose! Didn't expect to see you here!"

Jake stiffened next to you, but Henry's wife patted Rose's shoulder fondly. "Didn't know you two knew each other! Miss Rose here has made herself mighty useful over the past few weeks. Not a lot of us know how to write, so she's been putting down a record of things for us!"

"I do my best to help." Rose smiled mildly, shooting a look at Jake. "Nice to see you two again, as well."

"Where can we put the pies?" Jake choked out, studiously ignoring Rose. That, apparently, only made her grin wider. It seems that Jade was a bad influence already.

"Oh, right over there!" Henry's wife waved. "We had a table put up 'specially for them. How many is she making?"

"Who knows?" You laughed, turning towards the table. "We'll probably be helping her all day!"

"Could you use another set of hands?" Rose asked, then looked to Henry's wife. "That is, if you no longer need me here."

The woman grinned and waved her hand. "Nah, we've got the gist of it. I doubt more notes would help this group of blockheads." With that, she looked over her shoulder, shrieking, "No! No tables on the stage! How many times do I have to tell ya?" She turned and stormed off, and Rose set her book and quill down on the nearest table.

"Has it been like this all day?" You asked Rose as you set the pies down, putting yourself in front of Jake when he started edging towards the door. 

"More or less." She told you, smirking. "Miss Paint is a very colorful woman, true to her name. Sweet as can be until you try to put a chair at the wrong table."

As if on cue, a shriek echoed out, "Not the green ones! Those go over there!"

"Didn't know that was Henry's wife's name," Jake mumbled while you gestured to Rose.

"Come on! I'm sure Jane would love another hand in the kitchen. Honestly, there's probably going to be too many pies, but what do I know? I always think there's too many."

"Are you not a fan of pie?" Rose asked, falling into step next to you on the walk back.

You shrugged. "Baked things in general. I think I ate too much as a kid or something." You looked at Jake, remembering his confession to Jane this morning about conversations. Now would be the perfect time for practice! "Jake likes them, though!"

He looked at you, eyes wide and panicky, but Rose smoothly asked, "Which kind is your favorite, Jake?"

"Um." He looked at you for a second, then to Rose. "Strawberry. Jane makes the best strawberry pies, especially with the berries from Jade's garden back home. Always really red. I mean, strawberries are always red, but hers are the reddest"

Rose nodded like this was a particularly thoughtful exclamation. "Jade does seem to have quite the green thumb. I'll have to stop by and try one of these pies sometime."

"You'll love it!" Jake told her quickly, then blushed. "I mean, probably. Everyone does."

Rose smiled calmly at him, "Then I'm sure I will as well." Jake beamed a bit at that, and then launched into telling Rose about every kind of pie Jane has ever made. You sighed inwardly, wondering if you had unleashed a monster, but Rose nudged you with her shoulder, as if she understood why you were trying to encourage Jake to talk. You grinned down at her, then had to stop the wind from ruffling her hair.

 _Too soon, not yet._ Maybe you felt like you could trust her with your life, but you had to be certain. As much as it pained you to admit that, it was the safe option. And for now, you had to be safe.

Jade seemed ecstatic that Rose had shown up, and Jane quickly put her to work on the filling now that your spot was vacant. You and Jake were back on ferrying duty, and in the end, all twelve pies and three cakes made it to the barn safely. 

Rose excused herself around five to go and change for the feast, and the rest of you hurried up the stairs as well. Jake seemed a lot more excited about this celebration now that he thought he had made a friend, and babbled along with Jade as they tried to guess every food that would be there.

Upon entering the barn, many people were carrying dishes, and all of them looked amazing. There were quite a few you hadn't seen before! Thinking back to what Auden said about different cultures finding a home here, you wondered if anyone else would be telling stories tonight.

You four took a seat at a long table near the far edge of the barn, in between the door and the stage but close to the wall. People filtered in, and Jane and Jake sat next to you while Jade held seats next to her for Dave and Rose with her legs across the seats of the chairs. They were some of the last to show up, and as you saw them, you got that weird fluttering in your chest again. Jane nudged you, and you noticed a wind had picked up around the doors of the barn. You settled it, smiling sheepishly at her, and Dave and Rose arrived at your table none the wiser.

"Thank you for saving us seats, Jade." Rose told her, sitting next to her with a small smile. Dave said nothing, only nodded at you all as he sat across from you. 

"I made you guys something!" Jade burst out, like she couldn't hold it in anymore. You looked at her curiously, wondering when she would have had time today to make anything. But in the next second, she had pulled out a large handful of flower crowns, smiling brightly. Honestly, what else did you expect?

"One for everyone! I made them really quickly, so they're not my best work, but whatever, I'll make better ones tomorrow. Jake is the daisies," Jade began, handing them out as she named them off, "Jane is the baby's breath, the red ones are for Dave, the forget me nots for John, violets for Rose, of course, and mine!" She grinned, placing the little circle of ivy and some other bright green plant on her head. Jake was looking at his like it might bite him, but Rose put hers on, and you grinned and followed suit.

"That was nice of you, Jade." Jane commented from your right, the tight circle of baby's breath and small blue flowers now sitting atop her short hair. 

"We're celebrating Echidna tonight!" She responded, shifting in her seat. "We're giving thanks to Skaia, too, so I thought flowers were appropriate."

"Well, can't argue with that." Jake says weakly, but he smiles anyways, putting the little yellow and white flowers on top of his head. You look at Dave expectantly, and after a moment's hesitation, he placed it carefully on his head. The small rosebuds were a few shades lighter than his eyes, and you think Jade must have done that on purpose from the way she was grinning.

"Well aren't you all a sight to see!"

You turn and grin, waving at Henry and his wife as they sit a few seats down from you, Auden not far behind. Henry gestures to the top of his head, "Know where I could find me one of those?"

"I might have a couple extra!" Jade says thoughtfully, but the smirk in her eyes says _Yes I made like twelve extra please take one._ With an "aha!" she pulls one out of her pocket, the small white flowers twisting around ivy, similar to the simple one Jade had worn a couple nights ago. She hands it over to Henry, who grins and dons it, smiling to his wife. 

"How do I look, dear?"

"Simply stunning." She grins back at him, and Auden grumbles as he settles in his seat.

"When can we eat?"

"Well, looks like everyone's about settled." Henry looks over his shoulder either way, then stands, raising his hands so that everyone quiets down. "Welcome, all, to the third night of the harvest celebration! The dishes on your tables are up for grabs, and you're encouraged to wander around to other tables to try the others! Later on, desserts are in the back corner, nearly all of them made by Jane, here," He paused while a few people clapped, and Jane blushed, "And they're guaranteed to be fantastic! Enjoy!" With that, he sat back down, and the noise resumed as platters began clattering while people dug into them.

"A little more informal than the other nights, of course." Henry shrugged, reaching immediately for something that looked like a roasted goose. "But how formal can you really be when everyone is stuffing their faces?" His wife nudges him, and he grins at her, and then Jade kicks you under the table, bringing your attention back to her.

"Can you pass me that salad? With the weird purple things?"

The first few minutes of conversation are mostly everyone trying to figure out what dishes were which and where to pass them. With some looks of encouragement, Jake began a conversation, and Rose and Jade easily kept it going. He seemed relieved that it was much easier than it thought it'd be, and you could almost see him relaxing bit by bit. You were sure he'd be back to his overly loud self soon enough!

Dave was still silent, but you were beginning to think that was more just his personality rather than him being nervous. He listened more than he spoke, but he wasn't afraid to state his opinion when Jake began talking about how great the newest crossbows were.

"Swords are better, always." Dave told him, raising an eyebrow as he pushed a few peas around his plate. "Once you find one that's balanced correctly, you'll never have a better weapon."

"That's the trouble, mate." Jake leaned into the conversation, plate forgotten, which was a miracle. "Getting a good balance. You'd have to get it specifically made for you, whereas the crossbows you can just pick up and fire away!"

"I could make you one, easy." Dave shrugged. "If it's not perfect for you, it's free."

You set your fork on your plate. "You can make swords?" Something about that rung familiar in your head, but you couldn't place your finger on it besides the thought that _Dave_ and _sword_ were almost simultaneous in your mind. 

"Yeah." Dave nodded easily, wiping one hand on his pants while the other reached for another roll. "I have an apprenticeship with the blacksmith in town. I'm still learning how to make pitchforks and stuff, but swords are easy."

Jane frowned. "I thought swords were harder? Aren't things like hammers and tools supposed to be the easy ones?"

Dave shrugged again, which might be a habit of his to seem more relaxed, but to you just seemed like he was trying to reassure himself. "Maybe. But I have more experience making those rather than tools. But yeah, dude, just come by sometime. You live in town, right?"

"In the--"

"Farm, actually!" Jade interrupts brightly, and Jake only looks surprised for a moment before regaining his composure. Jade continues, "We have a farm not too far from here, so we come here a lot to sell our food."

"Oh." Dave's brow creases a bit, but smooths itself out in the next instant. "Well, like I said, swing by whenever, and we can try it out. Or whatever, it's fine." He shrugs a third time, and you smirk at him.

"How'd you get so good at making swords?"

Dave glances at Rose for a second, then looks at you. "We used to live in another town before this one. It was closer to where the army was, so when I was an apprentice there, weapons were pretty much all I made."

"That's so sick!" You grinned, leaning forward a bit as well. "Do you think you could teach me how to fight with a sword? I started learning when I was little, but it's been a while since I've practiced!" 

Dave seemed taken aback for a second before he gave a small smile. "I...sure, dude. We can spar a bit. I'll go easy on you, don't worry."

"Don't go easy on him, he'll just whine." Jade tells Dave, and you frown at her. "Kick his butt. That'll be the only way he can learn."

Dave smirks at you, something different in his eyes. "If you say so." You smile back, again smelling a campfire. It was probably just the torches behind you, a couple of them were bound to be low on oil after burning the past three nights. 

"Jane!" Henry interrupts, eyes wide as everyone looks over at him. "These pies are absolutely amazing! The best I've ever had!"

Jane blushes a bit, "Henry, honestly, they're probably not that good--"

"They really are, my dear." Auden confirms, nodding slowly as he closes his eyes. "The blueberry filling on this reminds me of when I was a young boy, playing in the forest."

"Oh, shucks, you guys." Jane blushes deeper, and you throw an arm around her, laughing. Dave sends a weird look your way, but Jade's leaning across Henry to speak to Auden.

"What story are you telling tonight?"

Auden smiled at her. "No story tonight! Like Henry said, it's much more informal, so we'll just let everyone relax and eat."

Jade whined, "Aw, for real? I was looking forward to it!"

Auden grinned, "Don't worry, we'll have a better story tomorrow to make up for the lack of them tonight."

Jade pointed a finger, "You better! I'll hold you to that, mister!", making everyone laugh around the table. 

The rest of the night passes with easy conversation, and eventually, Jade and Rose suggest going for a walk. Jake and Jane stay to chat with Auden, but you and Dave join them, following them outside to the town square where you all listen as Jade and Rose carry most of the conversation. With the four of you under the moonlight--it's really big now, it'll most likely be full tomorrow--it feels relaxed, easy. There's silence between you and Dave, but a comfortable silence. You don't have to force conversation to make it less awkward, and you're really grateful for that.

By the time you circle back around the square to the barn, you hear through the doors that someone's started up an old ballad, one that talks about how Skaia is a living person or something. Who knows what those old poems meant? You could barely understand them. Jade and Rose stop to listen outside the doors, and you keep the breeze circling above your head in lazy figure eights. Honestly, being outside was definitely preferable to the indoors. That's why you liked the cottage so much: with its windows almost always open, and it's solid stone walls, it felt like a part of the forest itself and never gave you the trapped feeling that you felt inside.

Man, it'd been a while since you flown. You should change that, soon.

"Shit, it's getting cold." Dave mutters beside you, and you startle when you see he's shifted closer to you, shoulders hunched up a bit as he shoves his hands in his pockets. "Where did that breeze even come from?"

"Who knows?" You try to shrug casually, but you know the way Dave shrugs is a lot smoother than yours. Slowly, you ease the breeze off so it's not directly above you two. "It always gets kinda windy this time of year, doesn't it?"

"Fuck if I know." Dave responds. "Rose and I are new around here."

"Oh yeah, you mentioned that!" You turn to him, listening as the song inside transitions to another old Prospitian ballad. "Where were you guys from, again?"

"Near the capital." Dave answers quickly. "Kind of on the west side, by the barracks."

Instantly, a picture forms in your mind. Outside the west gate of the castle was a huge courtyard where the regular army guys could practice fighting with the knights. You went there a lot with your uncle, who was trying to teach you to use a sword. You'd never let Dave know, but fighting with a sword just felt so lame. You loved the warhammer and shield techniques some of the older men used, but you weren't allowed near them. 

"Oh, cool! So you probably saw a lot of the knights around, then." He looks over at you, and you shrug, scrambling for an answer. "Jade and I lived kind of close to the capital, too. In a city on the east side." Well, that wasn't a total lie. Your rooms were in the east wing of the castle.

Dave hmphs. "Yeah, saw a lot of them, I guess." He watches you for a moment, then looks inside when some cheering picks up. You peer around the corner as well, oblivious to the fact that now you and Dave were inches apart. Yep, tooootally oblivious.

Up on stage is Henry--now quite a few drinks deep, no doubt--screaming out the lyrics to an old drinking song. There's a few men raising mugs as well and cheering with him, and your eyes widen. No one's sung this song in ages, at least from what you remember.

_"King James the Good and Sir Daniel the Bold,_   
_With mages and knights from the tales of old,_   
_Did smash those armies and Dersites to bits,_   
_And-YEAH-they got a load of it!_

_Oh, smashing and bashing, smashing and bashing,_   
_King James did smite them all!_   
_Smashing and bashing, smashing and bashing,_   
_Skaia the Grand will never fall!"_

The song continues into the next verse, a little more vulgar than the last, and sharp movement catches your eye. To your left, you see a dark cape whip around the corner, as if hurrying away from the barn. And on the shoulder, you could have sworn you saw a flash of purple--

"Was that the Derse crest?" Dave hisses, breath hot on your neck. You nod slowly, eyes wide as you watch the man run away.

"I think it was."

You reach out with the wind to stumble him up a bit, but he plugs on anyways, ignoring the gales that must be buffeting around him. Dave frowns at you, but you shrug it off, raising an eyebrow. "The Black King won't like that, huh?"

Dave looks over your shoulders one more time, worry creasing his brow. "No. I don't think he will."

"Dancing! They're dancing!" Jade calls out brightly, oblivious to the seriousness of the moment behind her. She grabs Rose's arm, pushing her forward. "Come on! We gotta get in on this!"

With a roll of your eyes and a smile, you follow Jade in, pushing aside the worrying thoughts. You were weeks away from the capital, what should you even be worried about? And after tomorrow, you all would be back to your little cottage. All would be fine.

Dave follows you in, and within a few minutes, Jade had dragged you both into the dancing circle while the drinking song still rambles on around you. The men and women are clapping as you all skip and dance, and Dave's hand is warm in yours.

Really warm, actually. It feels kind of nice after standing outside for so long.

You shoot him a smile, and he returns a small one before looking away and focusing on his dancing again. _Progress,_ you think, singing along to the song that's turned into more of a chant by now. _That's definitely some progress._


	15. All Hallow's Eve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> _I know it's gotta go like this, I know._   
>  _Hell will always come before you grow._   
>  _Trouble found me, trouble found me._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jeez it took me a while lol my bad
> 
> warning for some violence and fighting in this chapter

"Jade, do we really need to wear flower crowns every night?"

Jade's head whips up lightning fast, and Jake begins to stutter with his hands up.

"Don't get me wrong, I love the darn things! They're great. Super cool. Um. But...do we _have_ to?"

Jade narrows her green eyes at him, hands still moving slowly in front of her as the vines of the ivy twist and grow into a firmer, crown-like shape. "Jake, they're our _thing._ We've worn them for three days and we look great in them! We can't stop now!"

"We must persevere!" You shout in your best impression of Jake's adventure voice, and even Jake cracks a smile.

"Besides, it's the last night." Jane tells him, sewing down the hem of her dark blue skirt. At the last minute, she had decided to shorten it so it'd be easier to dance, and now Jade was making flower crowns on the floor of the room while everyone waited for Jane to finish up. 

You were ready to go, your fancy blue shirt on over your nicest brown pants, and your flower crown on your head. It was blue flowers of some sort, maybe poppies? Plants were definitely Jade's thing, not yours. But they matched your shirt, so. These crowns were a little bigger than the ones from previous nights, a little more intricate in the way the flowers folded together.

"Fine, fine." Jake sighs, smirking and holding out a hand. "Flower me, milady!"

Jade grins and tosses his to him, the small daffodils nestled in ivy a bit thicker than the others. He set it on top of his head, trying to pat it down without smashing it. "How do I look?"

"Very noble!" Jade assured him, still grinning. She had put baby's breath in her braid again, the small specks of white almost looking like starlight in her black hair. Jane's white flower crown was sitting off to the side while she finished up her dress, and Jade was working on one with small pink roses, now.

"Are those for Dave and Rose?" You ask, even though you already know the answer. The small pink roses are being twisted with more baby's breath, and the one lying on the ground next to her is made of tiny red chrysanthemums and pink bleeding hearts.

"Yep!" She grins, holding it up at last. "How do they look? I tried to mix it up a little this time."

"They're gonna love them!" You tell her, then laugh. "Well, Rose will. Dave'll wear it to make you happy."

"Good." Jade grinned, standing up. "It's almost dark, Jane, can we get going?"

"Just a few more stitches…" Her voice trailed off, then she snipped the thread with a flourish. "Done! Do you have everything? It's supposed to get cold later tonight, and it might rain."

"John told us that this morning." Jade rolled her eyes, and you just smiled, throwing her traveling cloak to her. After the dance tonight, you all were heading straight back to the cottage. While it had been fun, you were itching to get away from everyone so you could use your powers whenever you wanted again. 

"Just being sure." Jane smirked at her, pulling on her own cloak and grabbing her pack. "Well, let's get going then!" You all followed her out the door, stopping by to grab the few pies she had made. After walking this way so many times, it seemed like a quick walk from the tavern to the barn, even with the cold settling in heavier now. After all, it was the end of October. You were surprised it had stayed decently warm for so long this year.

"Lots more people tonight, isn't there?" Jake asked, voice half light, half worried. You looked from him to the people filing into the barn.

"Yeah, I guess. Maybe because it's the last night?"

"That's probably it." Jane nodded, then looked to Jake. "Remember, you don't have to talk to anyone. You can just follow us around all night, if you want."

Jake nods, but you can see he's still kind of worried. You smile reassuringly to him, and then you get inside the barn, and you freeze.

Everything is decorated in the colors of Skaia. Bright blues and whites cover everything, from large swatches of cloth on the walls to little stands of flowers on the few tables lining the room. The torches seem to be burning more gold tonight, and it all reminds you so much of the castle that for the first time in a couple years, you're actually homesick.

"It's beautiful…" Jade whispers, eyes wide and taking in everything around you. She has the same look on wonder on her face, and even Jane and Jake are looking around eagerly.

"You can thank Henry's wife for that." Rose's voice calls over, and you all turn to see her and Dave walking toward you, Dave holding some sort of plate in his hands. Rose is wearing a dark golden dress with orange embroidery along the seams and the edge of the skirt, the design reminding you of some of the older family crests that used to hang in the castle. Dave has on a white shirt with red trimmings, the loose sleeves hanging to his wrists. He has on his usual black pants and worn in boots, and you can't help but grin at them.

"Yes, Miss Paint really outdid herself tonight. She said she wanted to brighten the place up a bit." Rose continues, looking around as well. Dave shifts the plate to his other hand, glancing warily to the flower crowns that are now in Jade's hands.

"It looks fantastic!" Jake comments, eyes bright. "Always been a fan of gold, myself, a classic color."

"Yeah, I can tell by your flowers." Dave tells him, face even, and Jake looks like he can't tell if that's a compliment or not.

"Don't worry! I've got ones for you guys, too!" Jade responds instead, grinning wide. She holds the crowns out to them, complimenting Rose's dress as they put them on. Dave doesn't seem as bothered by it tonight, actually giving Jade a little smirk when she beams up at him. Jane, now setting down the pies, asks, "What's that you've brought with you?"

"Dave?" Rose prompts, turning to look at Dave with a sly smile. He stiffens, then looks straight at the plate while he talks.

"Heard John didn't like baked stuff, so we made him some fruit things. They're like cookies but less flour, I guess."

"Dave made them himself." Rose adds on while Dave quickly hands you the plate so he can put his hands in his pockets. "And I can tell you, they are really good. A family recipe of ours."

"Aw, Dave, you didn't have to!" You say, looking from the plate to him. Dave's looking away, but he shrugs off your thanks, and you can only grin wider. How nice of him! They actually look like something you might have had at the castle, once--

"Welcome, everyone, to the final night!" Henry's waving from the stage, grinning widely. "I won't be up here long, as our musicians are ready to get going! We'll be dancing the night away with a lovely send off of a story from Auden! So get to it!" He waves once more, then steps down to the stage, and you turn to Rose to ask about the fruit cookies, but Jade beats you to it.

"Look how great everyone looks!" Jade changes the subject, pointing to the middle of the room where people had begun to congregate. "Oh, I love when everyone dresses up!"

"We don't get to do it very often, do we?" Jane muses, watching with a sparkle in her eye. She smiles to herself, then turns to look at Jake. "Do you want to dance? Looks like the musicians are about ready."

Jake looks surprised, like he hadn't expected her to be this nice to him. Things had been kind of awkward yesterday, but it sounded like Jane really had forgiven him. With a small smile, Jake held out his hand, and he and Jane headed off towards the crowd.

"Shall we join them?" Rose asks, turning to Jade, who grins back and grabs her hand.

"Yes we shall!" They make their way to the crowd just as the instruments stop tuning, and Dave turns to you suddenly, a resolute sort of look on his face.

"Dave?" You ask, and he sticks his hand out quickly, almost poking you in the eye.

"Do you want to dance?" He rushes out, brow furrowed.

You blink for a second, surprised. You look at his hand for a second, then laugh. "Yeah, sure!" You take his hand, and spend the time walking over wondering who's supposed to lead when two guys dance together. For that matter, who led when girls danced? Was it just the better dancer? Or maybe whoever got to it first? Jade had let that dancer lead the other night, but she always led when she was dancing with Rose. Or so you thought. Actually, Jade had led sometimes when _you two_ were dancing together. So maybe it'd be like that!

"John, I think you're supposed to hold on to me."

Your gaze snapped up to Dave's, much closer and looking like he was thinking about laughing at you. Around you, all the couples were poised and ready for the song to start, and you blushed, turning to face him. "Right, my bad."

Dave's hand was already on your hip, so you put yours on on his shoulder, looking down to your feet. This was either going to be really fun or really embarrassing, and you weren't sure if that was why your stomach was turning over on itself or not.

The music began, and you recognized it enough to realize it was some sort of waltz. Those were easy! Dave moved first and you moved with him, gliding easily as the steps took you around the floor. Jade and Rose were off just to your left, still in conversation as they were dancing. Jake had taken initiative and spun Jane in an impromptu swirl, and she chuckled and swatted his shoulder.

"How'd you learn to dance so well?" Dave asks, bringing your attention back to him. His eyes are focused on your face, and for once, not looking away. 

"My dad was a big fan of ballroom dancing." You answered, turning in time with the music. "He made sure me and Jade knew all of the most popular dances, and we've practiced with each other over the years. Dancing's fun, it's a good way to pass the time when you're bored."

"Hm. Yeah, I guess." Dave shrugs, dislodging your hand for a second, but you get a better grip as you turn around again. 

"What about you?"

"I'm not good at dancing, dude."

"I know that." You stick your tongue out at him, and he smirks down at you. Again, only two inches, but it's enough. Maybe you'll be taller than him when you're done growing! After all, he hasn't said how old he is yet, so there's still hope! "But I meant how you know all the dances. Because sucky or not, you still know how."

Dave smirks again, raising his arm high to spin you around as the music crescendos. "My dad was like yours. Super proper, thought we'd need to know. We got invited to balls at the castle every so often, so he taught us the ones we'd need to know."

"You were at the castle?!" You almost freeze in your spot, but Dave's hand tightens on your waist, keeping you moving through your shock.

"Like, twice, yeah. When I was little, though, I don't really remember it."

Dave had been to the castle. _Dave had been to the castle._ You were right! That's where you knew him from! So you _had_ seen him before--

Suddenly Dave's dipping you, and it's all you can do not to shout in surprise as you hold on tightly to his shoulders. In the lowest point of the dip, he smirks at you, face inches away, then pulls you back up for another spin while your face burns.

"Bad at dancing, my ass." You tell him, mumbling. He only smiles in response, guiding you further along the dance.

At the end of it, everyone claps, and when the next song begins, you can practically feel Jade light up. This one was a quicker one that you and she had danced to a million times, making up your own moves for some of the more boring parts. Living at the castle meant that you had attended your fair share of balls, and this song was always played.

"Oh man, watch this." You tell Dave quickly before you reach forward and grab Jade, who's already reaching out to you. Without missing a beat, the two of you fall in step, and you're skipping your way around everyone else.

She's grinning brightly in your face, giggling every time a step comes up that you two had changed. Instead of bowing to each other, you high fived; instead of a small spin, you lifted her up as she jumped and sent her skirts flying around her. Each new move was crazier than the last, and with how hard you both were laughing, you almost felt like you were eight again.

On your next pass around the edge of the floor, you can see Dave near the dessert table, standing with Jake and probably talking about swords again. When you grow near, he pauses to smile at you with none of the smirk you're so used to seeing. You beam back at him, making him roll his eyes before he turns back to Jake.

The dance ends with Jade dipping you, and all around, people are clapping just as much in your direction as the musician's. You bow to her, and she shoves you, already looking to see what the next dance will be. It's another quick one, and she skips off to find Rose, so you head back to where you had seen Dave standing before. When you get there, you can't find him, but the song's already started, so you turn to watch instead.

After a couple shifts of the crowd, you spot him, dancing with the blonde girl from the other night. Just like before, his movements are really stiff and formal, and he's not dancing with any of the ease you saw when he was dancing with you. At least this time, he seems to be at least acknowledging her. You wave a bit when the dance turns him your way, but he rolls his eyes and looks back down to the girl. 

The next dance, you and Rose take a spin around the floor, and then you and Jade again, then a slow one with Jane, and on the fourth, you finally interrupt the girl so that you can dance with Dave once more. He seems relieved, tugging on your hand just a little too hard after the dance as you two make for the edge of the room.

Back behind the stage, off to the right, was a smaller door that the musicians used so that they could keep their things separate. Dave slips past the people helping the musicians and tugs you through it, ignoring as you ask him what he's doing. Finally, once you're around the side of the building in the dark, he holds a finger to his lips and pushes you against the wall. Confused, you stare back up at him, and he slaps a hand over your mouth as you open it to ask what the hell he's doing.

His face is only a few inches from yours, arm above your head and bracing him against the wall. He looks down at you, gaze growing a tad bit softer, and something skips in your chest before the moment is broken.

"Dave?" You hear someone call from just inside the building. You raise your eyebrows at Dave, and the look of frustration he shoots back is enough to confirm that it is indeed the blonde girl he had been dancing with. She calls a few more times around the door, and when her voice fades away, you can't help the shit-eating grin that's taking over your face.

"Trying to avoid someone?" You ask when he finally takes his hand off your mouth. He rolls his eyes and shoves away from where he had been leaning over you, and you feel the rush of cool air as he moves away. The breeze twists fondly around his feet, but he doesn't notice it as he glances warily back towards the doorway.

"She won't stop asking me to dance." He groans. "I don't know how much more obvious I can be that I'm not into her, short of kissing your sister or something."

Your eyes widen. "You want to kiss Jade?"

He spins to look at you, eyes wide and red in the full moon light. "What? No! I mean, she's cute, but don't get me wrong, I'm not into her like that. Like, I could see how someone would think she's cute, but I don't."

"You think she's cute?"

"Fuckin' hell." Dave smacked a hand to his forehead. "I'm just digging myself into a deeper hole. I'm not saying anything else."

You leaned forward, trying to look past his hands. "Daaaave, you think my sister's cute! Why don't you tell her?"

"No way. Not happening." 

"Dave!"

"No."

"Come on, Dave."

He finally looked at you through his fingers, and you grinned mischievously at him. "Am I going to have to set you two up?"

"That's it, I'm done hanging out with you." Dave threw his hands in the air, turning away. "Never again, because I can't keep my thoughts to myself. Ruined the few friendships I had because of a simple slip of the tongue. Never was a tragedy more great than mine."

You threw your head back and laughed, bumping it against the wall that you were still leaning against. Dave turned to look at you, one eyebrow raised, and you just shrugged, still laughing. He smirked, then gestured to the door.

"I think it's probably safe to go back." He put his hands in his pockets. "Also, I think the music stopped, so that usually means storytime, right?"

"Right." You grinned back, still a little breathless from laughing that hard. You fell into step beside him, feeling a little foolish even as you asked, "But we are still friends, right?"

Dave looks a bit taken aback by the question, but his face quickly resumed its calm expression. "'Course, dude. Don't think I could get rid of you if I wanted to."

It was kind of flippant, but you smiled anyways, following him through the doorway to where Auden was already on stage. The crowd was packed pretty tightly, so you two stopped off to the side. Jade waved from where she was in front of the stage, and you waved back, ignoring the glare you could feel from the blonde girl a few rows away. Yikes, Dave had really ruined that chance, hadn't he?

"I've been told that my story tonight has to be simply fantastic to make up for the fact that I didn't tell one last night." Auden starts, smiling down at Jade, who grins back to him. With a fond smirk, he looks back out to the crowd. "And so, I'll tell the little-known story of Sir Daniel, King James' right hand knight and his closest friend."

Dave shifts beside you, crossing his arms as he looks out to the crowd. After a second, he leans down to you, whispering, "Is it just me, or are there more people tonight?"

"Jake thought that earlier, too." You tell him, barely sparing a glance for the people as Auden begins talking. "Jane said it's just because it's the last night of the festival."

"Well, yeah, but they aren't exactly in festival clothes, are they?" Dave huffs, and you turn, eyes narrowing.

"What do you mean?"

"Look at them." Dave points discreetly around the crowd, keeping his voice low. You follow his finger, narrowing your eyes in the darkness. He must have way better vision than you. "All of us were told to wear bright clothes, like dressy stuff, you know? That's the only reason I'm in this itchy shirt."

"Is it really that bad?"

"It's the embroidery on the sleeves that gets you."

"Ohhh, got it."

"Anyways! Look, there's still people in dark shirts, black and purple. And there's quite a few that left their cloaks on, you know? Like, I get that there's a breeze tonight, but not one that's cold enough that so many people would keep them on."

You frown. Had your wind really been that noticeable? But Dave was right, there were a lot of people wearing coats inside. Almost like they had something to hide…

"It was because of their friendship that the rebellion was even started at all!" Auden continued, waving his hand across the crowd. "Call it fate, call it destiny, call it what you will, because Sir Daniel was in fact the young page that escaped the castle and grew up with King James in the woods!"

Oh, that was cool! You didn't know that part. You kind of always thought he'd be the one who was Dersite royalty that came over from the other side. 

"Still telling stories about the Great War, old man?"

The crowd falls dead silent, everyone turning to look at who could have shouted. Dave shifts next to you, suddenly stiff. You lean into him, trying to figure out who interrupted Auden. Auden, obviously, is just as perplexed, and goes back to leaning on his walking stick as he squints at the crowd.

"I am, in fact. You just interrupted one of my favorites. And who might you be?"

The crowd all looks around, and finally the same voice calls back, just a few rows back from Rose and Jade.

"Just a humble citizen of Derse, wondering if you still pledge loyalty to a kingdom that no longer exists!"

"There." Dave hisses just as you spot the man, and your eyes widen. You're positive it's the same guy you saw running away last night. He has a dark cloak covering his body, concealing everything except for his face, since he has the hood thrown back. As the crowd around him moves away, you can see a tiny spot of purple that must be the Derse crest.

Auden straightens up, and you can see the flash in his eyes as he spots the crest as well. With a steely note to his voice, he shouts, "I do indeed. I will always pledge my loyalty to Skaia and her people."

The man in the crowd frowns, something moving under his cloak. "Wrong answer. You had your last chance."

"Oh shit." Dave whispers beside you, and you barely even have time to spare him a glance as the strange man begins shouting again.

"I am Jack, one of the generals of the Army of Derse! I hereby accuse you guilty of treason and sentence you to execution! Effective immediately!"

"No!" You and Henry shout at the same time. You lunge for the stage, but Dave just barely holds you back, arm wrapped tightly around your waist. Henry gets there instead, throwing an arm in front of Auden.

"Who do you think you are, interrupting a festival like this?"

The man smiles, raising a sword and throwing his cloak aside. He turns to face the rest of the crowd as he proclaims, "And everyone here is guilty of harboring a wanted criminal, from this point forward! That also is punishable by death. And let me assure you, we are more than happy to carry out the sentence posthaste."

With a wave of his sword, men wearing cloaks all around the room begin moving, and you can see their coats were hiding light armor and weapons underneath. How did you not notice before? You were so busy dancing that you couldn't see any of it! What would uncle think of you now?

"Long live Derse!"

With no more than a shout from a few women, torches all around the building are torn down and thrown to the ground, where fires begin popping up as the wooden chairs and tablecloths catch easily. It'd been a dry few days, everything was dry, and everything was catching fire.

"No!" You shouted again, and the same man, Jack, whips around to look in your direction as screams begin ringing out. Even as everyone rushes from the door, his black eyes connect with yours, and you can see the snarl split his face.

"Oh no, he knows--"

"Fuck, he recognized me, _shit_ \--"

You and Dave look at each other in surprise, but in another moment, the crowd begins running for the main door to escape from the fire. Dave tries to spin you towards the small back door, but you whip around the other way, eyes wild.

"Jade! Rose!" 

"Fuck." Dave hisses, turning as well. "Rose! Where's Jane and Jake?"

Jade and Rose shove their way through a few people and stumble into you, Jade breathlessly reassuring, "Jane and Jake left for a walk right before you guys did, they didn't come back yet."

"Shit, so they're outside with the rest of the waiting army." Dave groans, red eyes narrowing.

"How do you know there's more?" You ask, and Dave levels his stare at you.

"Just trust me on this. They knew what was going on here, and they were prepared to kill everyone in this building. Dersites do not play nice when it comes to sympathizers. They send their best in and the rest are waiting outside to ambush anyone who tries to run."

Your eyes connect, and you nod slowly, grabbing Jade's shoulder in a tight grip. "Come on, we have to go. We can find them once we get outside."

The four of you turn and sprint, making it through the side door with ease. Once outside, it's a quick ten yard sprint to the shadows of neighboring buildings, and Dave takes the lead as you all follow him between streets and alleys that lead you in a wide circle around the main square. Once you're a block away, louder shrieks begin ringing out, and between one building and the next, you can see the Dersites have blocked the way out.

They were trapping people inside the burning building. With a sickening twist in your stomach, you can see a few of the Dersites laughing, and you want to throw up. _This isn't right._

"John, we have to go!" Jade shrieks at you, and then a familiar shout grabs your attention. Coming down another side street, Jake and Jane are running towards you, eyes wide in the moonlight. Their nice clothes catch you by surprise, and you're reminded that this was supposed to be a celebration. It was All Hallow's Eve, a time for happiness and parties and food and friends and the Dersites had _ruined all of it._

"What happened?" Jane asked as they caught up to you, winded. "We heard the screams start and didn't know what was going on!"

"Derse army, they knew we were all gathered there." Dave informed them, and Rose added, voice tight, "No doubt someone tipped them off that there were Skaia sympathizers in the vicinity and wanted to set an example."

"Jane, go get our packs form where you left them at the tavern." You told Jane, and everyone looked at you with wide eyes. You had never used such a formal tone, you were almost scaring yourself. But you couldn't just let this happen and not do anything. "Then you and Jake need to take everyone back to the cottage."

Jane's eyes widened, looking at Dave and Rose, "But, they--"

"They have to come with us, now." You looked at Dave, mouth set in a firm line. "He thinks the Derse general recognized him. And I don't know what they did, but we have to protect them. We have to stay together, do you get that?" You look to Jake. "Keep everyone together in the woods, I can catch up after easily enough. I'm going to go help get people out of the fire."

Jake swallows hard, but nods, and Rose steps forward. 

"I'm coming to help you, John."

Dave's eyes widen. "Rose, no, the fuck? We have a way out! They're letting us go with them!"

Rose looked to Dave, purple eyes flashing. "I can help, Dave. You know I can."

You froze for a second, then decided you could trust them. Enemy of my enemy or whatever, but you knew it ran deeper than that. With every fiber of your being, you knew you could trust them, and that they could trust you.

"I have wind abilities." You announce, and Dave and Rose's heads snap to you. Jake and Jane both seem astonished that you'd tell them, but Jade gives you a small nod. You take a deep breath, then continue. "I can fly above the flames and get people out, and then I can fly and meet up with you all as you're leaving."

There's something that passes between Dave and Rose, and then Rose turns to you and says, "I can control water." Something like the feeling of slipping your toes into a warm puddle runs down your spine as she continues, "I can put out at least some of the flames and help soothe the burns. I can help." For once, her voice sounds like it has an extra note to it, something other than her composed words.

She sounds desperate, like a plea. She needs to do this, just as much as you do.

"Fuck it, I'm just going to watch their backs and make sure the army dicks don't beat up on them while they're helping." Dave throws his hands in the air, then mutters, "I'm going to go get my sword and then I'll be back." With that, he turns and sprints, and you look to Jane.

"I'm serious. Get our packs and get going, as fast as you can. I can fly us all to where you are after we help as much as we can. Do not stop until you get to the cottage, don't even think about waiting for us. We'll get there."

She watches you for a minute, obviously debating. It's always what she says. Jane was your leader, your rock, your solid person for advice on what to do. And now that you were giving her orders, she was reluctant to let you out of her sight. She frowns and pulls you into a tight hug, then quickly lets go.

"Be safe."

"You too." You tell her, smiling at Jake and Jade, then with a nod from Rose, the two of you turn back and run to the barn.

The fire is much bigger than when you left. Now, it was creeping up the walls, the bright orange flames lighting up the town square.

"I can get the flames lowered in the door at least." Rose tells you, a calculating glare passing over the Dersites, now turning to face you. "Then I'm going to work on the larger parts of the flames."

"Got it." You nod, gathering up the wind at your back. "Keep an eye out for those guys, I don't want you getting hurt."

Something like sadness flashes through her eyes, and then she gives you a bitter smile. "Don't worry, I can handle myself." 

You nod hesitantly, and you can see Dave running back towards the group--really fast? Like holy shit, how was he that fast? One moment he's behind a building, and the next, he's flying through the air, sword ready and slashing at one of the Dersites in front of the building. Using his distraction as an opening, you launch yourself into the sky, flying as quickly as you can through the fire and trying to get your bearings.

There's a spot in the middle of the floor that the fire hasn't reached yet, and you land there as your eyes begin watering. You hold your sleeve over your mouth, trying to filter out the smoke. You know better than to try and filter out the air, because too much and the fire would just get bigger. Most of the tables and chairs have been overturned and now all lay haphazardly in piles, and the back of the building near the stage is in ruins. Beams from the ceiling have crashed down, and with all the creaking over the roars of the flames, you know it won't be long before more fall.

You hear a shout off to the side, and with relief, notice there's only a few people still stuck in here. You run over to them, putting an arm around two of them, and fly out of there, letting them go a few blocks from the fire. They try and thank you, but you just wave them off, coughing as you turn and fly back.

Dave's managed to injure or knock out--you hope it's just a knock out--quite a few of the guards, and true to her word, Rose has managed to put out a chunk of the flames on the left side of the building. She's waving her arms similar to how one of the dancers was moving the other night, slow and controlled movements, and you can see creeping tendrils of water lashing out and smothering the bases of the flames. Dave spins and manages to knock a guy in the side of his head with the handle of his sword, and you take off again into the flames.

Because of Rose, more people had run out while you were flying, and you lift the last two people into the air and fly them quickly away. Dave's cleared a path through the army, and some of the other men are helping guide others away into the forest, and you point them in that direction while you try and get your eyes to stop watering from the fire.

"John, he's still in there! John!"

You startle, wiping your eyes one more time, and you notice that Henry's wife is in front of you, hands on your shoulders. She must have been one of the people you had just flown out.

"Who is?"

"Auden!" Her voice is desperate, raspy from the smoke, and she looks a lot tougher than the others you pulled out of the fire, like she's determined to keep fighting. "They collapsed the stage while he was still on it, and I know he wouldn't have been able to move quickly enough to get out of there with that leg of his."

"It's fine, it's fine, I'll get him." You promise her, and she takes your hand in hers, pink eyes blazing in the firelight.

"Gods above, John, I didn't know you had these powers. But I'm so very glad you do. We'll never forget what you and your friends here have done for us. Never." She presses a kiss to the back of your hand like some of the nobles had done to you when you were little, and whispers fiercely, "Long live Skaia."

You nod to her, swallowing hard. "Now go, get everyone you can into safety!" She nods and runs, shouting thanks to Dave and Rose as she goes. Heart in your throat, you turn and fly back into the barn, hoping it's not too late.

The stage is in shambles, and quickly catching fire like the rest of the building. You can move some of the beams, and use the breeze when it's too heavy, and eventually, you hear a raspy sort of wail, and with two more beams shoved aside, Auden's there, buried in the rubble. More of the ceiling caves down behind you, and you think you can hear Dave shouting from outside.

"Auden!" You gasp, coughs racking your body once more. The smoke is even thicker, the fire almost too hot to bear. Wildly, your brain laments for ruining this nice shirt Jane made for you, but you shake it off. _I need more air._

"John, my boy." Auden waves waves you away, barely able to speak. "John, you need to go."

"I'm getting you out of here!" You argue, already moving to pull the wood off of his legs. He's buried up to his chest, only one arm free, and you think you can see his walking stick smashed in half not too far away.

"Oh, no you don't! Don't you _dare_ waste your energy on me!"

"Auden?" You pause, eyes wide, and Auden continues yelling at you, gasps for breath growing weaker by the minute.

"I've lived a long life, I don't need saving from this." His eyes shine up at you, bright and fierce despite how frail he now looks. "I just thank the gods I lived long enough to see the heir rise again."

You swallow back a sob, kneeling down to try and pull some of the wood away from him. The desperation of the moment was enough to wash away the shock of him knowing who you were despite how careful you thought you were. "Don't talk like that!"

"You go and save this kingdom like you were meant to." Auden tells you, and his voice has grown oddly calm, a sort of smile creeping across his face. "Name a feast day after me, will you? I think my nephew might like that."

"No, I'm getting--"

"You're getting out of here!" He interrupts you, reaching his one free hand to cup your face. "You get out of here this instant. The ceiling is about to cave in, and I don't think this is what the gods had in store for you."

You want to argue, to move more wood, something, but you know he's right. The creaking has increased tenfold and bits and pieces of wood are falling all around you. With a shaky breath and a cough, you nod, and Auden smiles at you.

"That's my boy. I'm so proud of you. Your father would be too, if he were here."

"Say hi to him for me?" You ask, and you can hear how wobbly your voice has grown. Auden nods, and whispers, "Go."

You turn and push off, aiming for the only hole in the fire you can see. You gasp for breath upon reaching the outside air, and you skid on your knees as you land, coughing up a lung as you hear the building collapse behind you. The wind swirls around you, clearing out the smoke quicker than you would have hoped for, and the rush of fresh air clears your head instantly.

A cheer rings up from the few Dersites still around, and you growl, low in your chest. How could they? _How could they?_ Gathering up fists of wind, you stand, and as you turn to face them, you tug hard, sending what feels like all of the west wind flying at them.

Dave and Rose duck as Dersites go flying by them, and the few that are still standing after charge at you, swords and maces raised in attack.

You leap back, a shout ripping from your lips as you pound down bales of wind on their heads, punch with the strength of the breeze, send them flying with everything you have. _This is for Auden. This is for my uncle, for my father, for everyone you hurt._

_This is for Skaia._

"John!"

A warning shout, and you barely have time to turn before you see an archer pointing an arrow at you. He lets loose the arrow, and quickly-- _too quick, how was he so fast?_ \--Dave leaps in front of you, turning so that the arrow doesn't quite go through his shoulder, but rips open a large portion of his shirt and skin as it misses its mark. Dave lets out a grunt and falls to one knee, breathing heavily as he reaches for his shoulder. The arrow skitters to the ground behind you, and you look from the arrow back to Dave with wide eyes.

"Dave!" Rose shrieks, and you can feel the temperature drop as a wall of water assaults the archer, sending him rolling back along the ground a good sixty feet. She runs over to Dave, trying to hold him up as she looks at his face. "Dave, Dave, stay with me, don't look at it--"

Looking around, there's still a good twenty Dersites now turning away from the woods and the town and looking at you three. The building continues to burn behind you, and with a sinking feeling in your chest, you know you can't do any more here.

_I'm so sorry, Auden._

"Rose!" You shout, and you don't have to say anything else as she grabs your hand and jumps onto your back, arms going around your shoulders to hold herself on. Dave's in your arms, still conscious, thank god, but groaning and sweating, and blood is pouring out from his shoulder all over his white shirt.

You spot Jack in the crowd of Dersites running at you, and you glare at him with everything you have. He will pay one day. One day, you'll come back and make Derse feel tenfold all the pain they've caused you. _They will all pay._

You summon the breeze around you and you shoot into the night sky, flying as fast as you dare with Rose clinging on for dear life and Dave curling into your chest. You zoom over the trees, not even bothering to look for the rest of your friends, because you know you have to get Dave to the cottage as soon as you can.

The full moon shines down on the treetops on All Hallow's Eve, and even a mile away, you can still hear the screams.


	16. herbs and poultices

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh my god hahahahaha i'm so sorry for leaving it off on that massive cliffhanger. i actually just published my first novel, so that's why i've been gone for so long!! thanks for sticking around.
> 
> let's get back to dave

_Do not panic. Do not panic. Do not panic._

"John, I'm going to need you to not panic." Rose states calmly, opening the cottage door ahead of you and immediately going to light the fire.

"I'm not!" You wheeze, turning sideways to fit both you and Dave--who you are carrying, because he passed out on the twenty minute flight back--through it. Dave groans again in his sleep, and your heartbeat kicks it up another notch.

"I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't lie to me." She responds, then huffs in annoyance when it takes a few tries. With another strike of the flint, the kindling catches from the few sparks, and with a small gust of wind from you, the fire picks up, and you have to look away.

You left him in that building. He had done so much, _and you had just left him--_

"John." 

Rose grabs your face in both hands, dark purple eyes connecting with yours, and for the first time, you notice how hard you're shaking. Swallowing hard, you take a deep breath, and she breathes in time with you.

"John, I know a lot has happened, but we have to take care of him as soon as we can." She states, voice somehow calm, and she lets go of you and smirks a bit. "Also, you can put him down now. It's okay, we made it back."

"Oh." You glance down to Dave, still in your arms, and you look around. "Right. Um, where?"

"I don't know if Jane would appreciate this, but put him on the table. We can move him to a bed once we know he'll be okay." Rose grimaces, going over to grab a huge pot. With a wave of her hands, a coil of water appears, soon lengthening and thickening until it's enough water to fill the pot, and she carries it over to the fire. "Do you have any bits of old cloth we can use for cleaning and bandaging?"

"Um, somewhere, yeah, I think." You're still shaky, still so worried about him. If he passed out, that's a really bad sign, right? Like, you've gotten cuts before that bled a lot, but you've never passed out! So it must be bad! Dave was now on the table, head slumped to the side, and you could see the way the sweat was trickling down the sides of his head. You refused to look at his arm.

"Bring them to me, please. We need to clean them before we can use them on him."

Running into Jane's room, you go and grab the cloths she used for cleaning and a few old shirts that you no longer fit into for good measure. Handing them off to Rose, you ask, "How do you know so much? Were you training to be a healer?"

"No, actually." Rose has gotten ahold of a stick and is stirring the cloths while she waits for the water to boil. She gestures to the shirts, and you begin tearing them into strips. "I was one of the few people in that town who could write, so I was working at the apothecary to help write down common remedies for future reference." 

"Did you learn anything that can help him?" You whisper, pausing in your tearing. She pauses as well, looking over to you, and for a second, you think you see a tear in one of her eyes. But with the next blink, it's gone, and she gives you a reassuring smile.

"That I did. Now," She glances around, obviously looking for something, "Do you happen to know where Jane or Jade keep their herbs?"

"We have an herb garden!" You tell her, a small ball of hope bursting in your chest. "Right out the front door! And there's some dried ones in a cupboard."

"Can you tell apart Witch Hazel and Thyme?" Rose asks, and after a second, you shake your head.

"No, Jade was always better with plants than I am." 

Rose smiles again, that knowing smile that kind of creeps you out a little, if you're honest. "I'm sure she is. Here, take these out, use as few of the cloths as you can to start cleaning him off. We'll have to clean it as much as possible in order to see what we need to do. When you've used them, rinse them in the pond and then put them back in the pot so we can reuse them."

You nod along, wringing out the first cloth as Rose hurries out the front door, the golden fabric of her skirts catching the light as they whip around in the small breeze. You turn to Dave on the table, swallowing again. The whole shoulder and part of the arm of the shirt was absolutely soaked, and there was only a few inches torn of the shirt. With a start, you realized you're going to have to take his shirt off.

Oh boy.

Trying to ignore the weird twisting in your stomach, you move his arm as gently as possible while you try and get his shirt off as quickly as you can. He groans and shifts, and you send a cool breeze across his face after a particularly loud hiss. In another moment, you've got it over his head and you put it under him, trying to give him some sort of pillow while he lays on the table. He's tall enough that everything from his knees down are hanging off the table, and you want him to be as comfortable as he can be, okay?

Now that you've got his shirt off, you can see just how much blood is covering his arm, and your stomach twists in a whole new way. You debate throwing up for a second, then realize that probably wouldn't help. Holding your breath, you reach forward with the cloth and begin scrubbing off the dried blood.

The stuff farthest away comes off easy, and you try to avoid going close to the cut for as long as you can, not wanting to hurt him anymore, but after a few minutes you know you can't avoid it any longer. He moans again as you clean off the wound directly, making you from in sympathy.

"Sorry sorry sorry!" You whisper quietly, trying to be gentle, but there's some spots that just won't come off. You've gotten your third new rag when Rose comes back through the door, arms full of plants.

"Not as much thyme as I would have liked, but we'll have plenty of witch hazel and peppermint." Rose pants, dashing over to the pot to toss a couple sprigs of something into the gently boiling water. She gives it a quick stir before running over to your stove and counter and dumping the herbs there. She begins searching through the cabinets, and you watch her.

"Jade can grow more when she gets back." You tell her, and Rose turns around with her eyes wide, and you stare at each other for a full ten seconds before you realize your slip. "Oh, shit."

"Honestly, that doesn't surprise me as much as it should." Rose responds, then smiles a little with relief. "That's also music to my ears. Good. Okay, good." She takes a deep breath, and you frown at her, but she shakes her head. "I'm fine. I just need to stay focused."

"I've got it as clean as I can without hurting him any more." You tell her, deciding that both of you should stay distracted and deal with it later. Rose finally finds what she's looking for--a mortar and pestle--and comes over to look quickly. She lets out a hiss, but cuts herself off quickly, eyes glancing over the wound.

"Deeper than I thought, but shorter as well." She looks up to you, sighing. "We can handle this. We just need to be careful the cut doesn't get infected."

"It can get infected?" You look down, frowning. "But the only thing that's touched it is water!"

"Cuts can get infected many different ways." Rose responds easily, and it almost looks like she relaxes as she begins rattling off facts. "Thankfully, with your control over the air element, we should be able to keep fresh air in here, and I can help keep the water clean, and Jade's plants will surely help." She finishes grinding up some of the plants before coming over and setting the bowl next to his shoulder. "All I could really ask for is a little more light, but I'm afraid we'll have to wait until the sun comes up for that."

You make eye contact with her, smiling for the first time since before the fire. "I think we can help with that, too."

Rose smiles back, using her water powers to rinse off her hands before she grabs a fingerful of the herb mash. "I was hoping you'd say that."

The two of you fell into a tense silence, broken only so often when you asked what she was doing with the different herbs she was applying.

"The thyme is an antiseptic, and it'll help with easing some of his pain."

"What's an antiseptic?"

"It will help reduce the chance of infection by making things cleaner."

"Is that why you put some in the water?"

"Precisely."

She would apply some herbs, you two would spend the time cleaning the used rags, and then you'd wipe off the old ones so she could apply a fresh dressing.

"What about the hazel?"

"It helps with the swelling. It'll reduce the blood flow to the wound and reduce the pain as well. The less swelling the better."

Underneath his shirt, Dave was all lean muscle, wiry but strong, and you could feel the corded muscles in his arm tense every time you wiped away new blood or the old herbs.

"You haven't done anything with the peppermint yet."

"I'm hoping I won't have to. While it smells nice, it's mostly to reduce fever, and I'm hoping that we began treating soon enough that we won't have to worry about him catching one."

Just as Rose was about to apply the fourth dressing, Dave's eyes snapped open, a huge breath making his chest shake.

"Dave!" Rose gasped, pulling her fingers back, and his gaze shot to hers, red eyes wide and wild in the center of his pale face. He tried to lift his arm and then immediately whined, looking down to his shoulder.

"No, don't look at it." You tell him, quickly grabbing his jaw and turning him away from it. Instead, he looks at you, and you press down on his other shoulder, stopping him from trying to sit up. "You're hurt, you need to stay still."

"You're okay, though?" He wheezes, chest still heaving, and you nod, trying to give him what you hoped was a reassuring smile.

"Yeah, thanks to you."

He nods to himself, breath staying irregular but looking like he was settling down. "Anything for you, my lord."

You freeze, eyes wide, but Rose is sighing, "He's hallucinating. I'll get the peppermint ready and see if you have any lavender so we can put him back to sleep." You nod, swallowing around the lump in your throat. Dave's eyes are closing once more, and thankfully, he's stopped trying to sit up. 

After the fifth application of herbs was put on his shoulder, the breeze warns you to heavy panting at the edge of your clearing. Your head snapped to look out the window, and Rose looked up as well in alarm when you moved, but in another second, you recognized just who was breathing that hard.

"John!" Jade screeches as she plows through the doorway, wrapping you in a hug and squeezing tight. "Oh, god, we were so worried when you hadn't caught up! And Rose! You're okay, too! Oh, thank every single god, I'm so happy you're okay!" She pulls Rose into the hug as well, blinking back tears. She smells like sweat, her hair limp and stringy around her face. They really must have run the whole way here.

"What happened to Dave?" Jane gasps as she comes through the door, Jake stopping just behind her with wide eyes.

"He got hit by an arrow." You tell them, letting Jade keep an arm around your waist. "He jumped in front of me and it got him in the shoulder."

"Is he okay?" Jake asks in a small voice, and you look to Rose, who nods slowly. Jade still has an arm thrown around her shoulders.

"He seems to have just started with a fever, but it's still pretty low, and thanks to the multitude of herbs in your garden, we've been able to reduce the swelling and pain." Rose smiles, voice just barely with an edge of worry. "We used some lavender as well to help him go back to sleep. Jade," She looks at her, eyebrows raised, "John tells me you can grow some more thyme should we need it?"

Everyone pauses, glancing at you and Jade, but Jade nods eagerly, eyes alight. 

"Yes! I can grow whatever you need. Anything at all." She squeezes Rose's shoulder, who smiles back at her.

"We should be okay for now, but I wouldn't say no to some more lavender to keep him restful for the next couple days." Rose turns to look at Dave, and everyone follows her gaze. "I'd like to get the swelling down a bit more before we try and stitch him up, however. And as much as I'd like to do it, I'm afraid my hands aren't the steadiest."

"I can do it." Jane nods, voice steely, and she steps further in the doorway to deposit the packs near the far wall. "Should we move him to a bed?"

"I can do it!" Jake offers, eager to help, and between the two of you, you manage to pull your bed out of your room and into the main area. It makes it crowded, but there's still enough room for everyone to move around, and it frees up the table to stage herbs and cloths. 

It feels like forever, but the swelling finally goes down enough that Rose says you can stitch him up now, and with a resolute look on her face, Jane does it quickly and carefully, not even flinching when a bit of blood squirts out onto her hands. Jake's holding a small orb of light above her head to give her better light, and Jade's gone outside to replenish the herb supplies.

Another hour, another application of herbs, and Rose frowns hard, handing moving from his shoulder to his forehead, where her mouth presses into a firm line.

"What is it?" Jane asks from where she's cleaning some more cloths, and Jake, with his orbs still hovering above everyone, turns to look. 

"His fever has worsened." Rose turns, grabbing some more peppermint off of the counter. "Add some more thyme to the water, please."

"Is he gonna be okay?" You ask, coming forward with a freshly ground bowl of hazel. Rose doesn't look at you, but she accepts the hazel and applies it a little more quickly than she had before.

"It's up to him and Echidna now."

Your breath halts in your chest, and you look down to Dave. He was grimacing in his sleep again, and you made a mental note to brew some more lavender tea to give him. Was he going to be the first to die for you?

_He can't be._

The soft light of dawn began creeping over the cottage, and it found Jake slumped against a far wall, soft snores echoing through the room. His orbs faded away as his snores grew, but there was enough light now that it didn't matter. Jade was asleep on the floor by the open door, flowers wilting away in her hair. Jane had fallen asleep next to the fireplace, and you scooted her over so that she wouldn't get too close to the fire. You stirred the embers, adding another log, before turning away and bringing the new clean rags over to Dave's side.

Rose had recently applied the herbs, and you were going to be wrapping up his wound so that it could have a chance to set in its stitches. Drowsiness was fighting a battle with your eyelids, but worry for Dave kept you awake, kept you moving even though your feet began to drag. Moving around the pots and different piles of plants on the ground was a hard task when all you wanted to do was slump over.

You couldn't blame them for falling asleep. You all had been through a lot tonight. No doubt everyone would be exhausted for the next couple days, if not longer. Jade would no doubt want to know what happened while you guys stayed behind, but you don't know if you'll be ready to talk about it for a while. 

Just as the first rays of light crossed through the window, Rose fell asleep at the table, pestle in her hand as her forehead rested against her arm. You took the mug of lavender tea from in front of her and tried to get Dave to drink a few more sips. As he sat up, he mumbled in his sleep again, cold and shaky. He hadn't broken the fever yet, and Rose wouldn't admit it, but it was worrying her. Setting the tea aside, you leaned him back gently, pulling up the blankets around his chest again.

And then the worst part--waiting. You grabbed a stool and pulled it to his bedside, leaning your elbows on your knees and watching as Dave fitfully turned his head, silent words still slipping from his lips.

The room grew steadily brighter, and the warm breeze was a comfort around your shoulders.

He had to be okay. He had to.

**Author's Note:**

> *flashes lights on and off* welcome to hell! welcome to hell!! welcome to hell!!!
> 
> (i'm on tumblr at davetrash)


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